The air transport industry has witnessed the emergence of new airlines in Nigeria, which has taken care of the low capacity in the industry.
Despite strong indications pointing to the fact that the industry currently suffers from low capacity, new airlines have come on board, with the belief that more operating aircraft would join soon.Reports have shown that the air transport industry is one of the badly hit industries by the devastating effects of COVID-19. And this may take years for the air transport industry to recover fully from, bearing in mind that many renowned airlines are merging, while thousands of aviation workers are losing their jobs. A travel expert once said, “Currently Nigeria is experiencing low capacity. There are not enough aircraft seats to meet the demand of passengers. I wanted to go to Abuja and I learnt that there are no seats. More Nigerians want to travel by air because road travel is not safe. I just heard that there was a security threat on the Lagos-Benin road today and every motorist stopped and parked his car on the road. No one wanted to move because no one knew what was ahead.
So many people would want to fly, which is the most reliable and safest means of travel that is also the fastest,”.This is why it is worth celebrating, when an airline institution like Aero Contractors, one of the foremost resilient airlines in Nigeria could still afford to meet the needs of its teeming customers, in spite of the dwindling economy. The airline may be experiencing growth, because of its ingenuity, tapping into the buoyant potentials in the industry, and serving their surging demand.
Aero Contractors, Nigeria’s oldest aviation company took delivery of two Airbus 320 aircraft from Heston Airline based in Lithuania, early this month.Aero Contractors Company of Nigeria Limited, known as Aero Contractors or simply Aero, is a state-controlled Nigerian airline company based at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos State, Nigeria. Furthermore, it operates helicopter services and fixed wing domestic and international scheduled passenger services, air charter and third party aircraft operations, largely in support of Nigeria’s extensive oil and gas industry. As the road transport system continues to be unsafe due to security threats and rail transport is yet to connect all parts of the country, Aero contractors are still seeking to meet the high demand for air travel in the country.The Managing Director of the airline, Capt. Abdullahi Mahmood, explained that the two aircraft arrived Abuja on Thursday afternoon and were immediately received at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, along with other senior executives of the airline.
Mahmood was appointed Managing Director of Aero Contractors in January to build on the success of his predecessor Captain Ado Sanusi.In nine months, he has strengthened the airline, expanding the frontiers of the Maintenance Repair Overhaul (MRO) arm of the company and increasing its capacity to maintain more aircraft.The managing director said the two aircraft leased by House of Five A’s would boost the fleet of the airline and provide the much needed capacity to serve the Nigerian market.The aircrafts are the first of its kind in the Nigerian market. These two aircraft through House of Five A’s will boost Aero Contractors fleet and give it the needed capacity in the Nigerian market. The new aircraft will also make Aero Contractors more efficient and offer more comfort to its customers. Interestingly, the aircrafts are new generation aircraft suitable to the company’s operations in the Airline market. Additionally, it is pertinent to commend Aero Contractor’s established excellent relationship with the lessors and the financier. Stakeholders in the industry are foreseeing a stronger relationship between both parties. Aero Contractors is currently in Receivership by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).
Olamide Adeniji is a member of the editorial team of TheScript Newspapers
