Arik Air introduces new Dubai schedule

Arik Air has introduced a new schedule for its Lagos-Abuja-Dubai route as the airline moved its operations to Terminal 2 at Dubai Airport.

The new schedule which came into effect February 20, 2015 guaranteed better connections within Nigeria, the spokesman for Arik Air, Mr. Adebanji Ola said.

He said the fares to Dubai were made flexible, making it possible for passengers from any point in Nigeria to pay the same fare as Lagos and Abuja passengers.

“The days of operation will continue to run as five per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays. The outbound flight now departs Lagos at 4:15 pm and arrives in Abuja at 5:30 pm.

The connecting flight leaves Abuja at 6:30 pm (local time) and arrives in Dubai at 4:30 am (local time, next day).”

This new schedule, he said, was aimed at allowing passengers to effortlessly travel to Dubai from major Nigerian cities same day.

Source : Daily Trust

NCAA to Introduce Aircraft Tracking for Domestic Carriers

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) will soon make it compulsory for every airline operating in Nigeria to install in its fleet tracking equipment that will capture the movement of the aircraft and relay it to the regulatory body.

This is in conformity with the new International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) policy, prompted by the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 early last which whereabouts is unknown almost a year after.

It is believed that if the aircraft were tracked, it would have been monitored to know exactly where it was before it disappeared and what might have led to its disappearance, as much of what is known about the aircraft today is mere conjecture.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) and ICAO have come up with a new rule that civil aviation authorities should make it compulsory for every aircraft to have the tracking equipment and also ensure that the aircraft are monitored.

ICAO in its Second High Level Safety Conference (HLSC/2) plans to move towards the adoption of a performance-based standard for global tracking of commercial aircraft, supported by a multi-national evaluation exercise to evaluate impact and guide implementation.

“This will continue the industry’s successful record of working with governments to improve safety through global harmonisation. We are all moving in the same direction. The conference conclusions should be a reassurance to all travellers that safety is always aviation’s top priority,” said IATA’s Director General and CEO, Tony Tyler.

The essence of the ICAO recommendation is for aircraft to report their position every fifteen minutes during normal operations. This applies only to remote areas which are not covered by surveillance by air traffic services. The IATA-coordinated Aircraft Tracking Task Force noted in its report that tracking over remote and oceanic airspace could be achieved through existing means of reporting and that new space-based technologies may play a key role in future.

Few years ago, NCAA embarked on installing aircraft tracking equipment but the project may not have been completed but THISDAY gathered on Wednesday that the regulatory authority would soon install more sophisticated tracking equipment which airlines must dovetail with by installing monitoring equipment in their aircraft.

NCAA reached its decision to install aircraft tracking equipment after the crash of Dana Air Flight 992 on June 3, 2012, which killed about 153 people.

Deputy Managing Director of Arik Air, Captain Ado Sanusi welcomed the idea, but insisted that it is not the responsibility of the regulatory authority but that of the airlines to install and monitor tracking equipment to know the movement of their aircraft.

“Most of our aircraft are installed with on-time, real time equipment for reporting system whereby we know exactly what is happening to the aircraft and where it is. The pilots cannot turn it off; nobody can turn it off. It is automatic and satellite based. For ICAO to now present it as one of their recommended practice and I hope the civil authorities will adopt that, it is a very good item to have but it is expensive though. I think it will mitigate the disappearing incident that happened with MH370 last year. When there is an unfortunate incident like that we can pinpoint where it happened and we can go for search and rescue,” Sanusi said.

Source: Thisday

Nigeria’s flag carrier, Arik Air, opens diplomatic air link with Cote d’Ivoire

Clarifies issue on alleged aviation fuel theft at Lagos airport
The flight, Boeing 737-800, took off from Nigeria’s oldest airport and the country’s commercial hub centre, Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos by 2. 45 pm (CAT), through Cotonou, Republic of Benin, to Abidjan. It was a 15minutes journey from Lagos to Cotonou and a one hour flight from Cotonou to Abidjan.
This new service will operate four times a week: Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
On Mondays, the outbound flight will depart the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos at 2:45 pm (local time) and arrive at Cotonou International Airport at 3:00 pm (local time). The flight then leaves Cotonou at 4:00 pm (local time) and arrives at Felix Houphouet Boigny International Airport, Abidjan at 5:00 pm (local time). The inbound flight departs Abidjan at 5:05 pm (local time) and arrives in Cotonou at 6:05 pm (local time). The flight thereafter leaves Cotonou at 6:10 pm (local time) and arrives in Lagos at 6:30 pm (local time).
Other days: Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, the outbound flight departs Lagos at 11:15 am (local time) and arrives in Cotonou at 11:30 am (local time). It will then leave Cotonou at 12:30 pm (local time) to arrive in Abidjan at 1:30 pm (local time). Inbound flight departs Abidjan at 1:35 pm (local time) and arrives in Cotonou at 2:35 pm (local time). The flight departs Cotonou at 4:40 pm (local time) to arrive in Lagos at 4:55 pm (local time).
Acording to the management of the airline, the new Lagos-Abidjan air service will be operated using Arik Air’s state-of-the-art Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft configured to carry 10 Business Class and 64 Economy class passengers.
The management said its reason for opening this route is because of the economic potentials citizens of these two countries stand to gain through this air link.
Its words: “Abidjan is a preferred destination for Nigerian businessmen and women. Arik Air’s foray into this commercial city will make life a lot easier for our guests who have been yearning for flight connection between Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire. This service will further underline Arik Air’s position as West Africa’s premier airline.”
Corroborating the management of Arik, the Nigerian Ambassador to Cote d’Ivoire, Mrs. Ifeoma Akabogu-Chinwuba, who was at the Felix Houphouet Boigny International Airport, Abidjan to welcome the inaugural flight to the country, said this service proviced by Arik Air, would indeed boost the bilatral relationship between Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire in many ways including trade and business transactions.
Her words: “There are so many benefits the two countries can gain by this direct air link by Arik Air. For instance, there are over three million Nigerians living in Cote d’Ivoire and they all have families. There are indeed a lot of bilateral activities between the two countries, particularly, economic and commercial activities, mainly from Nigeria to Cote d’Ivoire.
Many Nigerians have made so much investment in Cote d’Ivoire. They have hotels, schools, banks like UBA, GTB and Diamond Bank. All are Nigerian-established banks. We also have churches owned by Nigerians, as well as oil and gas companies belonging to Nigerians.”
On the volume of trade between the two countries she stated: “The figure we have in 2011 is over CFA200 billion especially in crude oil transaction and refined oil products that are imported or exported by both countries.”
Mrs. Akabogu-Chinwuba who joined the same aircraft back to Lagos on that day commended Arik Air for providing this direct service to millions of Nigerians in Cote d’Ivoire who have been itching for such opportunity to transact their businesses as quickly as they can using a reliable airline belonging to Nigeria.
Earlier in his opening remarks before the aircrat departed MMIA, the deputy managing director (DMD) and senior vice president (operations) of Arik Air, Captain Ado Sanusi gave some reasons why the company decided to venture in this service.
His words: “We have done a good study on the route and found out that there is a good market between Lagos and Abidjan. We also discover that there is potentiality of transit passengers that we will be going with to our long haul destinations via Lagos. This also will make Lagos a natural hub we are trying to build. Passengers going to Dubai, London or JFK can come to Lagos via Abidjan. We have seen it coming and we are going to capitalise on it.”
On why the aircraft will not be going through Lome, Togo as it was anticipated, he said: “Because of strategic reasons. Besides, we want to build Cotonue as another hub because Lome is being developed by one of our competitors and so we want to do the same thing with Cotonou.
Source: The Guardian

Arik debunks claim of workers theft of aviation fuel

Arik Airline has debunked claims by Aviation Minister, Osita Chidoka that three workers of the airline were arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos for siphoning fuel from an aircraft.
The Minister was said to have posted on his Facebook account, allegations that three workers of the airline were nabbed for stealing fuel from one of the organisation’s aircraft.
But spokesman for Arik Air, Banji Ola, in a statement yesterday, said investigations revealed that the three people caught at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos in the early hours of Sunday were siphoning JET A1 (aviation fuel) from a fuel truck but were not staff of the airline.
Ola disclosed that the airline does not have an aircraft with registration number 5N MID in its fleet, adding that the suspects were arrested by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) Aviation Security (AVSEC) personnel after illegally draining fuel from the truck belonging to one of the major oil marketers at the ramp.
Source: NewTelegraph.com

Passenger patronage of domestic airlines leaps by 20%

Passenger patronage of domestic airlines in Nigeria rose by 20 per cent between 2013 and 2014, according to a recent indus­try data obtained by Daily Sun.
The data sourced from domestic airline operators at­tributed the increase to “signs that the larger economy was witnessing a growth although it, noted that the increased patronage did not translate to higher profit margins for op­erators.
About a decade ago, a lull had hit the aviation industry following the reluctance of Nigerians to fly owing to the poor airworthiness of most operational aircraft and obso­lete navigational and weather forecast facilities, which cul­minated in frequent air crashes claiming hundreds of lives of passengers. The industry also had issues with the poor state of the airports and poor regula­tory environment.
“But between 2013 and 2014, passenger growth on domestic routes went up by about 20 per cent meaning that more Nigerians are now tak­ing the convenient option of flying to their destinations with domestic carriers than go by road,” said the report obtained on Tuesday.
“Aviation is a barometer for measuring an economy. One of the ways to check the pulse of an economy is to observe whatever happens to the flow of passenger traffic in the do­mestic airline industry.
“There had been a lull par­ticularly after the Dana Air crash of 2012. Traffic slumped. It hovered around three mil­lion and at its peak four mil­lion. But between 2013 and 2014, passenger traffic rose to above 14 million, which clearly shows signs that the larger economy was witness­ing growth,” it added.
Four airports were listed as attracting the highest volume of passengers: Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Owerri, while airports in the crisis-rid­den North East of Nigeria ranked as the lowest in terms of passenger patronage.
But the fortunes of the local airlines could be improved if government policies like the various bilateral air deals that allow foreign carriers operate multiple designated routes can be reversed.
Daily Sun checks revealed that the quest to boost patron­age by existing and some newly licenced airlines has led to the introduction of online or pre-booking schemes, which is accompanied by a slash in airfares ranging between 30 and 40 per cent on the econ­omy seats on such lucrative routes as the Lagos-Abuja; Lagos-Port Harcourt; Lagos- Uyo; Lagos-Kano; Abuja-Port Harcourt and Abuja -Uyo; Lagos-Owerri; Lagos-Enugu, among others.
Some of the airlines cut­ting down airfares to attract customers include Dana, Aero Contractors, First Nation, Med-View Airlines and newly licenced airlines, Azman Air­lines.
Azman, which flies the Lagos-Abuja and Lagos- Kano routes leads the pact of operators reducing fares as it charges between N10,000 and N11,000 for its economy class on those routes, which ordinarily goes for as much as N24,000 to N30,000. Custom­ers on the Lagos-Abuja route are now being charged be­tween N17,000 and N18,000 by First Nation, Med-View and Aero Contractors.

Source:sunnewsonline.com

Airlines, FG on collision course …as Arik Air loses N10bn on pilot training

 

 

Airline operators are set on a collision course with the federal government over recent directive by the Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka that all airlines operating in Nigeria must have a Nigerian pilot onboard their fleet of aircraft to reduce the number of unemployed Nigerian pilots currently put at 327.

While the minister believes the move would help to reduce growing number of unemployed Nigerian pilots, airline operators said the policy will not work as previous implementation did not yield good result. They argued that they had recruited and trained some Nigerian pilots in the past only for them to move to another airline shortly after they might have completed their certification examinations, stressing that such an exercise has no benefit to them.

Now that the policy seems not to have gone down well with some airlines, they have vowed to resist the move due to the perceived losts coming to them from the exercise. For example, the biggest airline in West African sub-region, Arik Airline claimed it had lost over $10bn on training Nigerian pilots who at the end of the day cross over to other countries to continue their career.

Speaking with Nigerian NewsDirect in an exclusive telephone chat, the Chairman of Arik Airline, Sir Arhumemi-Ikhide explained that they have shown Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), documents to back their reason Arik Airline, with a fleet of over 25 aircraft, will not obey such policy.

According to him, “FG said that we should train unemployed Nigerian pilots but world over, it is the government that trains pilots. Go to South African Airways or Indian Airways; they all withdraw from a government trained pool of pilots.”

He added that, “aside the fact that it is not our responsibility to train pilots, we have trained many Nigerian pilots in the past without good result to show for it. Remember, we are the only airline operating a Next Generation (NG) aircraft in Africa.

“Do you know that when we finished training these unemployed Nigerian pilots, they go to the Middle East to continue their careers. After disappearing, we will suddenly see them re-surfacing in countries like the United Arab Emirates or Afghanistan airlines operating.

“We are the ones who trained them. We have spent over N10bn to train Nigerian pilots in the past; but it is like putting water in a basket. It’s a waste of capital. After training them, we send them to European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) where they are issued European licence, but at the end of the day, they all elope to the Middle East.”

When asked if airlines could bond these pilots to checkmate the continuous waste of capital due to the pilots eloping to other countries after being trained, he explained that bonding is not effective in Nigeria.

In his words, “we have bonded them in the past but that is not effective in this part of the world. The system is not effective when it comes to bonding. Most of them will elope under the cover of gathering experience from foreign airlines. They will elope under the pretext that they will come back after gathering foreign experience.

“When we complained to NCAA, what we heard was shocking. NCAA told us that it is a free world, that since the pilots have their licences, they should not be subjected to any form of bonding or contract. Meaning that all money spent on them is a waste of fund.

“For us to accept to train any more unemployed Nigerian pilots, NCAA has to sign an undertaking with us. We have learnt our lessons and we have the list of pilots we have trained with our money. They are about 18. None of the Nigerian pilots we trained in the past is working with Arik Airline.

“We have spent so much money to train Nigerian pilots in the past. When they are in the training school, we keep paying them. We have our evidences to show for this. We cannot continue to throw money into a basket.”

When told that some Nigerian pilots still work with Arik Airline, he explained that, “those Nigerian pilots currently working with Arik Airline are people who were trained by their parents in the United States of America (USA) or the United Kingdom (UK).

“None of the 18 Nigerian pilots we trained in the past currently work with Arik Airline. They have all gone even when some of them were bonded. Most of them went abroad to work, and because we cannot force people to work with us, it is a waste of fund.

“We are currently talking to the government on this issue. Most of the time, government makes policy without consulting the airlines. We are the only one that has trained people in the past, but the Ministry of Aviation said they are not aware of this, but NCAA is aware. We have shown them the list of the trained 18 that have disappeared.

“NCAA needs to make an undertaking that after training, they will not elope. The government has to make laws that will make airlines comfortable. Those unemployed pilots complaining are also looking for an opportunity to elope. That is what they do.” It was not clear at the time of compiling this report whether the minister of aviation will take the issue lightly as the operators have vowed not to obey his order. Mr Osita Chidoka was appointed aviation minister last year to revive the aviation sector within six months of operation.

Source: newsdirectonline.com

Cleaner returns N12m found at Lagos airport

A cleaner with one of the cleaning concessionaires at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja, Lagos, has returned the sum of N12m found at the terminal.
The cleaner, Miss Josephine Agwu, who is said to be on a monthly salary of N7,800, returned the sum, which was probably left behind by a passenger at the security unit of the airport.
According to National Mirror the incident happened on January 23, 2015, while Agwu was cleaning a toilet near the screening point of the departure area of the airport.
Speaking with some journalists at the terminal, Agwu explained that she saw a small handbag left behind by a passenger and acted on instruction that any bag left unattended to in the airport terminal must be picked and deposited with aviation security department of the airport.
She said after asking other passengers if the bag belonged to anyone of them and they all responded negatively, she picked up the bag and took it to the security where it was opened and found that it contained $27,000 and other currencies, including naira, which added up to N12m.
She, however, told journalists that a passenger on Emirates Airlines, who was later simply identified as Samuel from Anambra State claimed ownership of the bag and its contents from the aviation security after much screening.
She added: “If I had taken what doesn’t belong to me, God will punish me. I am content with my N7,800 monthly salary. It was not my money. I believe when it pleases God, He will bless the work of my hands and will make me rich.
“This is not the first time I am doing this. This is the third time in this airport. The first was in the departure area. It belonged to a Nigerian. The second was at the screening point; it belonged to a white man. Of all, only the white man rewarded me with $50, which I rejected until my colleagues prevailed on me to collect it.”
Agwu holds an Ordinary National Diploma, OND, in accounting.
She also said she had worked with many airlines as casual worker in Enugu with a track record of honesty without anyone of them offering her full employment before she moved to Lagos to seek greener pastures, but instead again, got a job in the airport as a cleaner.
The Airport Manager, MMIA, Lagos, Mr. Nathaniel Auta, confirmed the report when asked by our correspondent.
He said: “It was true that a cleaner with one of the concessionaires discovered such a huge amount of money and returned it to security. It is a very good testimony for us all.”
Also confirming the development, Chief Security Officer, CSO, of the Lagos International Airport, Colonel Carl Onalo (rtd), said the lady in question must be appreciated for her honesty to encourage others.
He said management of the airport and possibly that of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, would do everything possible to celebrate her honesty at the airport.

Source: nationalmirroronline.net

 

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New York Route Is Growing Steadily, Says Arik Air US Chief

For over five years now, a Nigerian-owned airline has been enjoying an exclusive New York-to-Lagos route. Although there have been challenges with Arik Air, the airline may have come to stay, and figuring out a way. But one of its strengths is the lush interior of its aircrafts, the standup bar inside the plane in the economy class, and the attractive business class it offers at a rather reasonable rate. Arik Air Vice President in The Americas, Robert Brunner, in this chat with LAOLU AKANDE, in New York, gives an update on international aviation business, even as the Nigerian airline looks to expand its reach in the African continent.

Can you tell us about the Arik Air’s new frequent flyer miles’ programme?
It’s great; it is very exciting time for us. W Arik Air Vice President in The Americas, Robert Brunner e are still growing and implementing many new types of programmes for passengers. The frequent flyer programme Affinity Wings is just the next step in that process.
So we’re very pleased people can now travel and skip points, redeeming them for free trips or upgrades or various other benefits and awards as they go through the collection of the miles. And reach other status where they can get other benefits as well.
Certainly the passengers have been calling for it for a long time.
We’ve been operating to New York for five years and probably for four years and nine months I’ve been hearing ‘where’s the frequent flyer programmes? It’s great that it’s there now, and, so far, it seems to be running very well.
Is it only for the New York route?
It’s for the entire network, it makes a lot a sense for Nigerians to join it, because they fly a lot of domestic flights. It’s a little more difficult here unless you’re flying 3,4,5 times a year back and forth to Nigeria. It’s hard to get to network and get a lot of points and trips but we actually have quite a few people that fly us monthly or every other month, and stuff like that, a lot of businesses and a lot of people going back and forth.
How do people sign up?
You go to the website, then you just click on Affinity Wings and you can enroll. It is a very simple enrollment process. You just basically put your name, address and basic information in there and you’ll get a number right then and there.
What benefits do you get?
As you travel, you will get a card and get all the stuffs you need. As you go through the tiers from the basic level, you get the ability to collect points and redeem for travel or other redemption benefits.
But you need to have flown quite a few times to get the points, to say I’m now moving up through the different tiers and then you get the associated benefits of priority boarding, other lounge access, free baggage and others.
You have been around for about five years on this New York-Lagos route, how has the business been?
We have started our 6th year last November. The outlook is great. I mean we have been growing year over year month over month right from inception and right all the way through up until unfortunately Nigeria got a touch of Ebola.
That slowed the travel down and pretty much through the end of last year it was still down. But it has started to recover; in December it was coming back up and I think we’re still seeing that so its only February now, so I don’t see all the January numbers yet, but I think they look much better than last August where it was really being hit.
So, I think the people now have realized that Nigeria is Ebola free. Nigerians and Nigeria should be very proud of how well they handled Ebola & how quickly Nigeria was declared Ebola free. It was phenomenal and a round of applause to all those people that were involved in that.
Tell me more about how Ebola impacted your business; were people that scared?
That is probably a good word, but nobody called me up to say “I am scared.” I see macro numbers; I don’t see individuals all the time. But you could just see from the numbers of the people and how few people were traveling then.
And I am not just talking with Arik, the entire market between the United States and Nigeria had a dip, and it was felt by every airline that flies to Africa. It wasn’t just Nigeria, it was all throughout Africa.
Hopefully, now that word is out that it’s limited to a few cities and to few countries, the trend has reversed. And it (sales) is coming back. I think the market is back, I’m going myself in two days; so, it shows you, if I’m not afraid, why should anybody be afraid?
Nigeria handled the Ebola issue very well and I am happy to say that to anyone that brings the issue up.
Has the New York route been a business success for Arik?
It’s been great, month after month as I said, it keeps growing we have a terrific market share here and we’re hopefully going to be implementing some new products that will help people from areas a little further away from New York to get here.
We don’t have the interline agreements with other carriers as yet. For instance if you want to fly from Chicago to New York and get on our plane right now, you have to take a separate airline ticket and that’s inconvenient for people. We’re absolutely thinking about it and working towards it. It takes a lot of steps to get to that point but we will get there, and that will be a big step.
But for what we have right now, there are a lot of opportunities, not just to Lagos but we fly to a lot of good cities throughout Nigeria, and we also fly to a lot of cities in West Africa West and Central Africa.
Arik Air now flies to Accra, Banjul, Cotonou, Senegal, Luanda and Abidjan. So, we are getting people who go to these places to fly via Arik.
We have excellent connections to Abuja everyday. So those are the places that are the next focus to get people to think of us as an airline for West Africa, not just an airline for Nigeria any that’s the big push.
How do you compare with your other competitors on the US-Nigeria route in terms of business success?
Extremely favorably as far as the first to schedule, we are the only non-stop airline flying from New York to Nigeria, which talk about time- savings. I think they (our passengers) will be there in 10 hours & the next closest one is 15.
So we talk about time saving. How many times can somebody say on a round trip basis you saved a whole day? I mean how many times are you sitting there just wishing you could find an extra hour in a day?
Here we’re offering 10 hours on a travel, so you know it’s phenomenal. And then our aircraft itself is brand new, we bought them brand new, it’s now 5 years old but it’s in very good shape, brand new airplane.
And the legroom inside 3-4 inch pitch economy class, which is more than any other airline across the Atlantic. So when you sit down you probably could cross your legs, you probably can’t do that in most air carriers, and that’s a big benefit.
Our rows are 2-5-2; that is, there are only nine seats across. Many airlines would have 10 in the same space. So ours is a more comfortable airplane.
I don’t know if you saw that there was a standup bar in the economy class. Who else has standup bars in economy class? If somebody sitting next to you wants to sleep and you feel like having a chat, you can get up, go someplace and let that person get some rest.
So, it is well thought out with the theme of the passenger. And our business class cabin 75-inch wide flat seats with massage capability inside those seats and 17-inch TV screen. It’s privacy screens going up so if you don’t want to talk to your neighbor you can put your screen up so it’s all very comfortable and it’s designed that way.
 Source: The Guardian

Foreign airlines raise fares on naira’s depreciation

 

• Forex dealers halt trading as dollar goes for N204.25

Shrinking prices of crude oil, which has debilitated the naira by about 40 per cent since June last year, has compelled airlines that ply international routes to adjust their fares by between 40 per cent and 100 per cent, New Telegraph has learnt.
The naira, which traded at the official market at N155 to $1, was devalued to N168 per dollar last November, while the rate at interbank market, where banks buy from one another to cover their positions, moved from N160 to N204.25 per dollar at the start of trading yesterday before settling at N202.50 per dollar.
Investigation by New Telegraph yesterday at some travel agencies in Lagos and airline offices at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, showed that fares on international routes are quoted in dollars. While the dollar has remained stable, the naira has continued to slide to current exchange rate at N210 to $1 at the parallel market.
Consequently, Nigerians are paying more for journey to destinations such as Johannesburg, Nairobi, Addis Ababa, Europe, the United States and Middle East. For instance, the least fare on booking made for March 15, 2015 to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Ethiopian Airways is N231, 715 as against about N128, 000, being the cost of the same trip last year. This fare is regarded as the minimum as fares are charged based on different parameters.
For business class seats, the fares could be as high as N800, 000. Despite high fares, Nigerians travel in luxury, making the Nigerian route one of the most lucrative in the world. Fares to Nairobi have equally gone up to N184, 990 for economy class. The same class ticket cost less than that last year.
Premium airlines such as British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Air France, KLM, Delta, Emirates and Qatar Airways plying European and Middle East routes, have also jacked up their fares. For instance, a flight from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos to the Heathrow Airport in London costs about N810,000 for a business class ticket, while the same ticket from Accra, Ghana, which is about the same distance, costs N720,000, which is about N96,000 less than the fare from Nigeria.
A flight from Lagos to London will take six hours and 35 minutes on the average, while a flight from Accra to London will last for about six hours and 20 minutes, a difference of about 15 minutes. For instance, Virgin Atlantic fares from Lagos to London has also gone up. For passengers who are booked for March 2 for an economy class seat, the least fare is N245, 000 compared with N178, 354 that a passenger (name withheld) paid same period last year.
Virgin Atlantic charges Nigerians $4,173 and $2,956 for its Lagos-London premium economy and economy tickets respectively; while fliers from Accra pay $1,826 and $1,563 for the same categories of tickets on Accra-London haul. Lufthansa’s rate for Abuja-Frankfurt Economy class ticket is $2,761, whereas Accra-Frankfurt on the same class of ticket is $1,550. For KLM, an economy ticket from Abuja to Amsterdam costs $3,502, while the same class of ticket from Accra to Amsterdam cost $2,181. A travel management expert, Mrs. Uloma Egbuna, attributed the hike in air fares to the depreciation of the naira, saying while the dollar remains stable; the naira has continued to slide to an alltime low.
In that situation, Egbuna said Nigerian travellers would continue to chase fewer dollars with plenty of naira, which she said is not easy to come by. Before now, stakeholders had accused foreign airlines of fare disparity resulting in Nigerians paying higher fares than passengers in Ghana. A top official in the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) lamented that despite the depreciation of the country’s currency, foreign airlines have taken advantage of the country’s lack of national carrier to impose astronomical fares on Nigerians.
Minister of Aviation, Mr. Osita Chidoka, told this newspaper that the issue of price fixing by international airline operators and the apparent disparity in ticket costs levied on Nigerians compared with that of other continental destinations would be addressed. Experts noted that the major causes of the disparity in the fares were multiple taxes that airline operators had to pay in the country, high operational costs and inadequate infrastructure. An airline source, who pleaded anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media on the issue, said if air fares could be as high as this in low season, he imagined what it could be in summer when a lot of people travel.
Low season in aviation is a period when demand for air travel is low. It is usually winter period. Airlines try as much as possible to reduce fares because of low traffic. Meanwhile, deploying for the first time a ‘circuitbreaker’ agreed among themselves last month, leading banks in Lagos yesterday halted trade after the naira dropped more than two per cent to close weaker at N202.50, an alltime closing low.
The rout has been driven by the combination of a tumbling oil price and a rise in political risk, which worsened last Saturday when authorities pushed delayed the February 14 presidential election by six weeks. “There is panic because of the postponement of elections. Uncertainty caused by the delay has been priced in the value of the naira and it is causing further depreciating of the currency,” one dealer said.
Source: newtelegraphonline.com

NCAA Stops Airlines with Private Operator’s Certificate from Charter Service

In line with the directive given by the Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka, on Tuesday that airlines that embark on commercial charter service without the appropriate certificate would be closed down, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) on Thursday named the airlines that were given certificate to operate as private airlines; not commercial charter service.

The regulatory body said any airline that does not have the appropriate certification would immediately be sanctioned.

“The public is hereby notified of the list of foreign registered privately-operated aircraft that have been issued with Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority Flight Operations Clearance Certificate (FOCC) and Maintenance Clearance Certificate
(MCC) whereby the owners are authorised to operate within Nigeria strictly for Private Operation Only and not for hire or reward (not for commercial purpose) according to Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs) 8.2.1.9,” NCAA disclosed.

The airlines with the licences for private operations are: Air First, ANAP Business Jets, ATT Aviation Support Limited, AVJET Corporation, BUA Group Limited, Chrome Air, Delmon Aviation./C&K, Dominion Air, EAN Aviation Limited and Executive Jets.

Others are: Toucan Aviation Support, Tag Aviation Limited, SWAT Technology Limited, Southern Air, Project Eagle Air Limited, Prime Air, Orlean Invest West Africa , NAMCO Nigeria Limited, Gyro Air Limited, Grenfact Ventures Limited, Gitto Construzioni and Ferry Aviation Development Services.

NCAA said the use of these operators’ aircraft for commercial operations would be in violation of the Nigeria CARs 9.1.1.4(a)(b) and would attract appropriate sanctions by the authority.

The airlines with private operator licence have been the major charter operators for years in Nigeria, thus eclipsing those who have the commercial licence to operate charter services and pay stipulated charges to the government.

To have commercial charter operator certificate, there are given conditions which must be met by the airline, including regular scrutiny of its operations by the NCAA, adequate maintenance of its aircraft according to given conditions by the regulatory body and retraining and medical check-up of the airline’s pilots.
Airlines with private operator’s certificate are exempted from the stipulated strict conditions and monitoring.

Source: Thisday

Airlines Operators Fault FG’s Directive on Employment of Pilots

 

Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka



Nigerian airlines are severely criticising the new directive given to them by the federal government stipulating that every aircraft on commercial service must at least have one Nigerian pilot in its cockpit.

This directive was aimed at providing jobs for about 500 Nigerian pilots who are yet to get jobs many years after their training, while indigenous carriers employ expatriates who now dominate the technical area of the airline sub-sector.

Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka who gave the directive on behalf of government in Lagos on Tuesday gave July, 2015 as deadline for airlines to comply with the new regulation, failing which they would be grounded.

But while many airline owners viewed the directive as good because it was meant to create job for indigenous pilots, they noted that it would be practically difficult to enforce the regulation.

One of the indigenous operators told THISDAY on Wednesday that the new directive was good, but that government must provide the funds for further training to accumulate accepted number of hours that would qualify the pilot to be type-rated and be made a co-pilot for a particular aircraft type.

The operator said if government is not ready to fund the training the airlines may revolt and ground their operations before government’s directive to ground them.

“When a pilot finished training as a pilot he may have logged in about 200 flying hours. There is no way you can make a first officer as co-pilot of medium sized equipment and large body aircraft. Insurance insists that you log in minimum of 50 flying hours on that particular aircraft type with about 500 hours flying experience. So where will the pilot get the extra 300 hours flying experience? Insurance want to ensure that the co-pilot will be able to, at least, land the airplane if the pilot in command is incapacitated or if he dies.

“For you to get 500 flying hours and 50 hours experience of the aircraft type, the pilot will have to train on single pilot certified aircraft. Such aircraft are not in Nigeria; so the pilot will have to go overseas to train and get the stipulated minimum hours. So when you say that you want to put a co-pilot in a big body aircraft without meeting these criteria, insurance will not allow you,” the operator said.

Also, the Chairman of Arik Air, Joseph Arumemi-Ikhide told THISDAY that his airline had embarked on training Nigerian pilots and have continued to train them but the challenge is that whenever these pilots complete their training on New Generation aircraft, which the airline operates, they are poached by the Middle East carriers.

So it would be very difficult to carry out the directive given by the federal government, remarking that these Middle East and other airlines go to the training school to get the names of the trainee pilots and when they complete their training the airlines would come to Nigeria and interview and employ them.

“But if you say you want to bond them so that after training they will be able to serve you for given number of years before they leave, the pilot may become scarce during the period of bonding,” the Arik Air Chairman said.

Source: Thisday

Naira devaluation erodes gains in aviation, say experts

Despite the fact that oil marketers are yet to reduce the price of aviation fuel, otherwise known as JET A1, airline operators said that a drop in the price of the commodity would make no impact on their operations because of the devaluation of naira.
One dollar now exchanges for N168 at the official market but trades at N208 at Bureau de Change (BCDs). The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which devalued the naira by eight per cent last October, has been trying to narrow the gap at which the currency, hard hit by the drop in oil prices, trades on the interbank market through its regular interventions and is also trying to curb speculation.
Over the last year, the banking watchdog has burned through 20 per cent of its reserves, spending $28 million a day to defend the currency, which has been under unrelenting pressure from a lack of petro-dollars. By end-January, reserves stood at $34.28 billion While the Federal Government announced a cut of N10 in the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), aviation fuel still sells for between N98 and N105 per litre, raising hopes that the price of the commodity might drop following the sharp decline in the price of oil.
The global airline industry is expected to report a near $5 billion increase in profits this year to $25 billion, benefiting from cheaper fuel after crude oil prices slumped 60 percent since June last year. Now that the price of crude oil has sunk to a six-year low, petrol is much cheaper, but airfares and some home energy bills still seem head-scathingly high.
The cost of jet fuel, for example, has fallen a whopping 43 per cent on average worldwide from the price a year ago. On January 7, as North Sea oil prices hit a five-year low of $53 a barrel, British Finance Minister, George Osborne, tweeted: “Vital this is passed on to families at petrol pumps, through utility bills and air fares.”
In Nigeria, local and international fares remain unchanged, although the cost of aviation fuel has not gone down.
Source:newtelegraphonline.com

FG to raise airlines’ capital base to N2bn

The Federal Government may ask domestic airlines to recapitalise in view of the financial dire straits the operators have found themselves. Experts confirmed that the nation’s carriers are weak and lack the capacity to operate profitably, hence the need for them to become healthy is imperative through recapitalisation.
A presidency source confided in New Telegraph that the government was planning to raise the capitalisation base for Nigerian operators to between N1.5 billion and N2 billion in view of the devaluation of the naira and based on the high capital intensive nature of airline business.
This is not the first attempt by the Federal Government to review the capital base of airlines as it had in 2004 through the then Minister of Aviation, Mallam Isa Yuguda, given indigenous airlines designated to operate along the West Coast and on international routes 24 months to recapitalise to the tune of N500 million and N1 billion respectively. Yuguda said the increase in the capital base of airlines was in line with international requirements for airlines flying international routes.
The policy then helped to weed out those operators described as very weak, while serious one continued with their services after they met the condition.
Chairman, Committee on Aeronautical and Non-Aeronautical and Passenger Charges in Nigeria, Mr. Ahonsi Unuigbe, told New Telegraph at the launch of Aviation Commits Initiative that inappropriate business model of most domestic airlines has done incalculable damage to them. According to him, the minimum capitalisation requirement for domestic airlines is only N500 million ($2 million), which at today’s exchange rate, barely covers the cost of effectively operating and maintaining one aircraft and therefore does not ensure a fleet size that allows for economy of scale.
Ahonsi, whose committee was set up by the Minister of Aviation, Mr. Osita Chidoka, to look for ways to cut down multiple charges imposed on Nigerian airlines said the report submitted to Chidoka a month ago looked at also a prevalence of inaccurate computation of statutory charges and non-remittance of the passenger charges collected by airlines to appropriate aviation authorities.
According to him, “From the tickets analysed, some airline operators deliberately charge as high as nine per cent of base fare as Ticket Sales Charge (TSA) as against the statutory five per cent, expected to be remitted to the government through the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). “One has to wonder the motivation for this act, and if the statutory charge in question will be appropriately remitted to the relevant government agency or rather constitute part of the profitability of such airlines at the expense of both the passengers and government,” he stated.
Unuigbe added that there is also a prevalence of poor service to passengers in the face of non-enforcement of the passenger bill of rights, which entitles passengers to several means of redress, in the event of any infraction.
He stated that the committee identified some of the factors responsible for the disparity in the aeronautical and passenger charges across countries and regions to include inadequate state of support infrastructure; size of airspace; macro-economic environment; continuous changes in government policies and political interference.
Others are absence of a national carrier; inadequate business models and absence of transparency among stakeholders. According to him, in the light of the findings, the committee articulated in the report, far-reaching recommendations to address these issues holistically.
He commended the minister on the laudable initiative as we well as all his other creative and commendable efforts at repositioning the industry to becoming a major aviation hub in Africa and for having the political will to pursue the much needed reform in the sector.
Source:newtelegraphonline.com

 

Perishable cargo export takes shape as mega carrier enters Nigerian market

The ongoing development of 14 cargo terminals for the export of perishable goods may have started to attract the attention of the international community as mega cargo carriers are beginning to show interest in the export of such goods.

Sanya Airways, one of the carriers, which is based in Atlanta in the United States but which is operated by Nigerians, is set to commence operations into the country from the world’s busiest airport in Atlanta, using a B767-300ER on Aircraft Crew Maintenance Insurance (ACMI) programme.

Although, export of perishables is relatively low in Nigeria due to lack of awareness and equipment for preservation, Sanya Airways says it will initially operate weekly on a continuation leg to Lagos from Liege in Belgium and then ferry to Namibia where it will airlift perishables to Liege.

Segun Adesanya, chief operating officer of the airline, said the B767 venture enables the company to market perishable exports from South Africa to Europe which is growing rapidly.

“In addition, the operation will provide inbound capacity for Sanya Shipment in Europe and USA for onward connectivity to its West African network, the service is also good for delivering products that are bought online from abroad by the African traders.

“The aircraft loading capacity means we can offer payload of up to 45 tons as well as accepting long and oversized pieces, giving a new dimension to our business to and from Africa. We are very excited with this new venture that will be cost effective cargo solutions to freight forwarders, traders, online users for heavy and outsize pieces, energy equipment, tie critical cargo, dangerous goods and others,” he said.

He added that the Airline will provide competitive pricing, offer block space, backloads and other commercially innovative solutions that are value-added service to its clients.

He disclosed that the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company plc(NAHCO), the foremost ground handling company in the country, will provide the trucking and warehousing solutions for the company.

Already, there is no cargo airline that operates direct flight between Lagos and Atlanta, except for Delta Airline, a passenger carrier, which does part of it.

Adesanya, who identified the need to develop the business of cargo in Nigeria, advised government to do all it can to bring the business to limelight in order for bigger companies to tap into it.

He said for instance, the US airport authority had already granted Sanya Airways 12-month free landing and 12-month free office space as incentives to encourage such businesses, adding that apart from developing the airports which are supposed to be the gateways to export, Nigerian government can look into granting concessions to companies.

Also speaking, Oluwole Adeyemi, chief executive officer of Broadline Services, the logistics company that will see to customs formalities and documentation for the company, disclosed that they are already in partnership with the 14 airports being repositioned, adding that Sanya Airways will explore everything needed to begin operations before Summer this year.

 

Source: businessdayonline.com

Arik Air resumes flights to Cotonou, Douala

Arik Air, West and Central Africa’s largest carrier is resuming flight services to Cotonou, Benin Republic and Douala, Cameroon from Monday, January 19, 2015.

 

Flight services between Lagos, Nigeria and Cotonou/Douala were suspended last year in the wake of the outbreak of Ebola Virus in some parts of West Africa. Arik Air will be operating four weekly flights from Lagos to Cotonou and Douala on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

 

Outbound flight departs Lagos at 11:15 am (local time) and arrives in Cotonou at 11:45 am (local time). The flight leaves Cotonou later at 12:30 pm (local time) to arrive in Douala at 2:00 pm (local time). From Douala, the inbound flight departs at 2:45 pm (local time) and arrives in Cotonou at 4:15 pm. The flight thereafter leaves Cotonou at 5:00 pm and arrives in Lagos at 5:30 pm.

 

Arik Air’s managing director, Mr Chris Ndulue commented on this development: “We are pleased to return to Cotonou and Douala after the brief period of suspension of flights. We thank our guests for their loyalty and promise that we shall not renege on our pledge to provide world-class experiences and services which are safe, reliable and continually contribute towards the quality of life in the region.”

Source:www.ngrguardiannews.com

Experts Flay Domestic Airlines For Poor Feasibility Studies

Stakeholders in the avia­tion sector have called on the Nigerian domestic airlines to carry out feasibility studies on managing airlines before venturing into the sector.
The comment is coming on the heels of the suspension of Discovery Air’s Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) issued to it by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) over alleged safety beaches.
Speaking in an interview in Lagos, an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer, Patrick Adah, stated that some of the challenges domestic airlines are passing through are caused by the air­lines themselves.
The Aircraft Maintenance En­gineer wondered why Discovery Air, that secured AOC less than a year ago cannot sustain its op­erations.
He contended that one of the first things the airlines are get­ting wrong is that they are not ready to do the right thing, add­ing that there are laws regulat­ing whatever they are doing in the aviation sector but that these airlines don’t want to do the business according to the rules.
Adah said that the fact that these airlines did not do their home well before venturing into airline business informed why an airline such as Discovery Air ,barely one year after it secured AOC has started having issues with the regulatory body NCAA.
“What is wrong? Was the air­line not prepared? Didn’t they do their homework well before venturing into the business? As far as I am concerned, it is too early to start having problems with the regulatory body,” he said.
He stated that aviation indus­try is safety driven, adding that a situation where airlines’ work­ers no matter who the workers are; whether technical or other­wise, are not paid their salaries compromise safety.
He took a swipe at the regula­tor, who he alleged, has not en­forced the rules as it should be, adding that what is going on the political scene is what Nigeri­ans are witnessing in the avia­tion industry.
According to him, “safety is not negotiable in aviation. Safe­ty is enhanced when all staff from cleaners to the managing director play their own part”.
On whether the issue men­tioned by NCAA is enough to suspend Discovery Air’s AOC, Adah said that there may have been other issues which NCAA did not make public.
He also alleged that some air­lines that operate cargo fly their aircraft abroad for C, Checks without paying workers’ sala­ries, despite the fact that these workers were neither sacked nor given suspension letters.
Source: Daily Times

Suspected stowaway arrested at Lagos airport

An incident of security breach occurred at a private general aviation terminal, Execujet, on Sunday, when a male teenager Samuel Ogungbeyi suspected to be a stowaway was arrested in the tyre compartment of an aircraft.
The aircraft was parked in the hangar of the terminal at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport La­gos.
A reliable source within the private terminal told Daily Times under the con­dition of anonymity that the teenager was discovered at about noon when pilots of the aircraft, marked M-MYNA, were carrying out a routine inspection before starting the engine.
The commanding pilot was said to have detected the young man in the tyre com­partment of the aircraft.
Also two handsets with­out sim cards which the sus­pect claimed ownership of were also found in the com­partment.

In his confessional state­ment, the suspect claimed he had entered the hangar through the facility of the Headquarters, Air Defence Corp of Nigerian Air Force located next to the Presiden­tial/ VIP Lounge in the air­port, on Saturday night with the help of a person he iden­tified only
as ‘a brother’.
The boy who spoke in Yoruba and Pidgin English Languages, said he was able to cross the runway L18 run­way over to ExecuJet facil­ity located in the interna­tional wing of the
airport, a distance of about one kilometre, at night when he noticed there was no flight landing or taking off on the runway.
The aircraft operated by Tag Aviation was said to have flown in a former Min­ister of Petroleum, Chief Dan Etete into Lagos air­port on Saturday night and parked at the
private hangar, where it was expected to take off yes­terday afternoon before the incident happened.
The general manager Cor­porate Communications Mr Yakubu Dati Federal Air­ports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) told Daily Times at press time that he was gath­ering details on the incident. However, a military source who sought identity protec­tion described the allegation of the stowaway entering the airside of the airport through airforce facility as an attempt by the terminal operator to cover up security lapses on its side.
The source suggested that search light be beamed on the security network of the terminal to get to the root of the matter.
Source : Daily Times

Arik Air spreads wings to Abidjan

Arik Air, West and Central Africa’s largest airline will from 16^th February 2015 commence scheduled flight operations from Lagos, Nigeria to the Ivoirian city, Abidjan via Cotonou, Benin Republic.

 

According to a statement released by the airline,the new service will operate four times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

On Mondays, the outbound flight will depart the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos at 2:45 pm (local time) and arrive at Cotonou International Airport at 3:15 pm (local time). The flight then leaves Cotonou at 4:00 pm (local time) and arrives at Felix Houphouet Boigny International Airport, Abidjan at 4:20 pm (local time). The inbound flight departs Abidjan at 5:05 pm (local time) and arrives in Cotonou at 7:25 pm (local time). The flight thereafter leaves Cotonou at 8:10 pm (local time) and arrives in Lagos at 8:40 pm (local time).

The statement further explained that on other days (Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays), the outbound flight departs Lagos at 11:15 am (local time) and arrives in Cotonou at 11:45 am (local time). It will then leave Cotonou at 12:30 pm (local time) to arrive in Abidjan at 12:50 pm (local time). Inbound flight departs Abidjan at 1:35 pm (local time) and arrives in Cotonou at 3:55 pm (local time). The flight departs Cotonou at 4:40 pm (local time) to arrive in Lagos at 5:10 pm (local time).

The new Lagos-Abidjan service will be operated using Arik Air’s state-of-the-art Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft configured to carry 10 Business Class and 64 Economy class passengers.

Arik Air’s Managing Director/Executive Vice President, elaborated on the new service:

“Abidjan is a preferred destination for Nigerian businessmen and women. Arik Air’s foray into this commercial city will make life a lot easier for our guests who have been yearning for flight connection between Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire. This service will further underline Arik Air’s position as West Africa’s premier airline.”

The Lagos-Abidjan service is Arik Air’s first new route in 2015. Abidjan thus becomes Arik Air’s 7^th destination in West Africa.