Arik Air Announces Port Harcourt NAF Base-Warri Service

Per 1 February 2011, Arik Air will commence af five weekly (Monday-Friday) service between Port Harcourt NAF Base (Garden City Terminal) and Warri Airport (Osubi Airstrip). Flights will be operated with Dash 8-Q400 aircraft.

• W34011 PHG-QRW 09:20-10:20
• W34008 QRW-PHG 15:05-15:50

Port Harcourt NAF Base (Copyright B. Berings)

Osubi Airstrip - Warri Airport (Copyright Delondiny)

Arik Air: Four Years In The Skies

On the occasion of Arik Air’s fourth year anniversary, the following announcements were made:

• The airline has up to date carried 5.8million passengers and has over 40 per cent of the traffic share in Nigeria.
• The airline has invested over $6.1 billion in acquisitions and orders in the past four years.
• The airline is awaiting approval from the Federal Government to develop the GAT terminal that will be owned by government and operated by FAAN (Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria).
• The airline promoted Chris Ndulue from acting Managing Director to MD.
• The airline will provide charter services for Christian pilgrims to Israel.

The following routes will be introduced/cancelled this month:

• Re-introduction of Garden City Express (daily Lagos-Port Harcourt NAF Base-Abuja flights) per 1 November.
• Re-Introduction of daily Lagos-Uyo-Abuja flights per 15 November.
• Akure and Ilorin are dropped as destinations.
• Arik Air intends to start a three weekly service between Port Harcourt NAF Base and Benin (Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays) later this month.
• Upcoming are also new regional routes to Abidjan, Bamako and Ouagadougou.

Aero Makes Changes To Schedule

Aero announced it will increase its frequencies from Lagos to Abuja and Port Harcourt to eight and five daily flights respectively, effective October 1, 2010.

From the 17th of October, Aero’s flights from Lagos to Warri (Osubi Airstrip) and Port Harcourt NAF Base will no longer depart from the MMA2 domestic terminal, but will be operated from Aero’s private terminal at Lagos Airport.

The launch of international services to Libreville has been put on hold.

This Week’s Update

Some bits of news over the past week:

• Arik Air will operate a B737-800 on the Lagos-London route till 25 May 2010, due to maintenance on the A345.
• After the rift with the Akwa Ibom State Government, Arik Air now angered the River State Government, after the airline published a negative report about security in Port Harcourt in its in-house magazine The Winds, calling it an unsafe destination. Arik Air terminated its flights to Port Harcourt NAF Base earlier this year, but still flies to Port Harcourt International Airport.
• The Minister of Aviation organised a meeting between Aero and Oceanic Bank to find an amicable solution for the debt issue. In the meantime, Aero is operating all its (helicopter) flights according to schedule again.
• The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) reached an agreement with the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) about the payment of debts by the airlines to the agency. Arik Air reportedly paid N50 million as part of a payment plan.
• Virgin Nigeria (briefly known as Nigerian Eagle Airlines) issued a statement, but no further comments were made on the announced name change of the airline.
• VistaJet is expanding in Nigeria. It already has two aircraft based in Lagos and concluded a three-year agreement with Nigerian businessman Kola Aluko.
• The Nigerian Air Force will build a new aircraft maintenance hangar at Ilorin Airport.
• Keep an eye on the website of the NAF for updates on the Air Expo that will be held next week at Kaduna.
• The Senate Committee on Aviation has called for a review of the N64 billion ($426 million) contract for a second runway at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. The price is ‘far too high, way too expensive and outrageous’, according to the lawmakers.

Arik Air Drops Port Harcourt NAF Base

Arik Air no longer flies to Port Harcourt NAF Base (or the Garden City Terminal als they call it). All Arik’s flights to Lagos and Abuja are now operated from Port Harcourt International Airport. Arik Air dropped eight destinations in less than a month time, although the routes are only on ‘temporary suspension’ according to the airline.

Aero still operates flights from Port Harcourt NAF Base to Lagos and Warri.