Air Peace on Wednesday began scheduled flight operations from Lagos to Sokoto via Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the inaugural flight by the airline’s Boeing 737 aircraft landed at the Sultan Abubakar International Airport, Sokoto at 12.45pm.
The Sokoto State Governor, Mr Aminu Tambuwal, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Bashir Garba and other dignitaries in the state were at the airport to witness the flight.
Speaking, the Chairman of Air Peace, Mr Allen Onyema said the vision of the airline was to collaborate with government to create jobs for the people and contribute to national development.
“Today, we are inaugurating our Sokoto service with the conviction that it is a new dawn for air travelers on the route.
“We have come to Sokoto to inaugurate on-time departure, uncompromising premium on the safety and comfort of air travelers and affordable flight services.
“We recognise Sokoto as a very strategic economic and social capital in the North and Nigeria as a whole. “The inauguration of the Sokoto route, therefore, signifies that Air Peace is keen to developing long-lasting relationships with the government and the good people of the state.
“This is with a view to addressing the challenges of air travel in the area. ”
Onyema, who was represented by the airline’s Quality and Safety Manager, Mr Patrick Achurefe, said the airline had embarked on a strategic expansion plan since it commenced operations on Oct. 24, 2014.
According to him, Air Peace has established itself as the preferred airline on the Abuja, Benin, Calabar, Uyo, Owerri, Enugu, Port Harcourt and Lagos routes.
“We are already replicating our success story on the regional route with the launch of our Accra-Ghana flight operations.
“Soon, we will be in Abidjan, Douala, Niamey, Dakar, Johannesburg, South Africa, Dubai, Mumbai, Guangzhou-China, Atlanta, and London among other destinations we have secured approval to operate flights into. ”
In his remarks, Tambuwal said recommendations from aviation stakeholders showed that Air Peace was debt free and currently one of the best airlines in the country in terms of reliability.
“The airline has sufficient and reliable aircraft in their fleet. So we decided to reach out to the management and they answered positively to our call.
“We had an extensive discussion on how to make their services profitable for the benefit of the people of Sokoto State.
“We want to assure you that we will do everything possible as government to ensure that you do not have any regret for extending your services to the state,’’ he said.
Also speaking, the Airport Manager, Mr Ahmed Abubakar assured the management of Air Peace that the facilities on ground were adequate to guarantee them safe and hitch-free operations. (NAN)