By LAWANI MIKAIRU

Managing Director, Arik Air, Mr Chris Ndulue has revealed that  the airline  is the first commercial airline in over 20 years to operate a brand new aircraft in Nigeria. Mr Ndulue made this revelation during the 6th anniversary celebration of the airline at its corporate headquarters in Lagos.

The celebration which had in attendance the  Chairman of the airline, Sir Joseph Arumemi-Ikhide , Captain Ado Sanusi, Vice President, Operations, Engr Emmanuel Usifo, Director of Airworthines/Standards,  Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, Engr Biyi Sangowawa, Director, Aik Air, Mr, Altfried Nessel, Chief Commercial Officer, Lufthansa Technik Maintenance International, Sen. Aniete Okon, Vice Chairman and the Senior Vice President , Operations, Mr. Ro Thomas , witnessed the cutting  of the sixth anniversary cake.

Addressing aviation reporters, Mr Ndulue said the airline which started operation on October 30, 2006, with four daily flights between Lagos and Abuja, using three brand new Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft and carried only 29, 363 passengers by year end, representing less than one per cent of domestic  flight ,has since grown to become the airline with the  largest fleet in Nigeria with 23 short, medium and long range aircraft and has the youngest fleet in Africa with an average age of less than 5 years.

The airline has carried over 10.2 million passengers in six years of operation and now controls over 65 per cent of the total domestic market share. It does about 120 daily flights from its two hubs in Lagos and Abuja and  serves 22 destinations across Nigeria.

It has five routes in West Africa, viz Accra, Monrovia, Freetown, Banjul, and Dakar. Two in Central Africa :Angola, Douala,one route in  South Africa ,Johannesburg. It also flies to London Heathrow and J.F. Kennedy Airport  in New York, America . Arik Air services 42 routes across the world.

The Managing Director further said the airline has Invested $2 million dollars on cadet pilots training and has created over 2500 direct jobs for Nigerians .It has full active membership of IATA. Mr Ndulue revealed that the airline plans to expand its African destinations  to include Abidjan in Cote d’Ivoire, Conakry ,Guinea, Kinshasa,Congo, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, and  Libreville in Gabon. It will also expand long-haul destinations from Lagos to Houston ,USA, Abuja-Kano-Jeddah ,Saudi Arabia, Accra-London, Freetown-London.

The airline also plan to  expand its interlining and code share arrangements to develop services to points beyond Europe, Middle East & USA. It is launching new maintenance hangar and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in partnership with Lufthansa Technik.  A new Super Hangar for wide bodied aircraft  and Arik Aviation Academy in Benin.