South African Airways pledges commitment to Nigerian market

Economic downturn in the country notwithstanding, South African Airways (SAA) has pledged its commitment to the Nigerian market, with a promise of improved services to customers.

In partial fulfillment of the pledge, the airline on Monday introduced its brand new A330-300 aircraft to the Lagos-Johannesburg route.

The aircraft is one of the five new state-of-the-art super-comfortable aircrafts that the airline has acquired to improve its services to passengers in Nigeria.

Regional Manager, North, West & Central Africa, Ohis Ehimiaghe, said that the successful introduction of the new aircraft, at a time most international airlines were pulling out of Nigeria, was an achievement for the South African airline.

Ehimiaghe said: “To have a brand new aircraft in a fleet of any airline is always a joyous celebration. It takes a lot of planning, finance, insurance and other factors coming to play to ensure that the interior of the plane suit your desire.

“Yes, it has been a tough time for all airlines all year round. Irrespective of the challenges, however, the truth is that South African Airways still believes in the Lagos and Abuja markets.”

Recall that some airlines, including Delta Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Emirates and RwandAir, have pledged their commitments to Nigeria, amid challenges with repatriation of funds, fuel shortage and low patronage.

SAA, with 20 years of flying the Lagos route, said the country has enormous potentials far beyond the Lagos route.

He said: “We all know that Lagos is the cash-cow of the Nigerian economy, we are not underestimating the potential that Abuja has got to offer as well. So, it is our pride to be one of the airlines flying to Abuja. It is worthy of commendation that South African Airways is not stopping its operation in Nigeria.

“Instead of stopping or reducing capacity, we are bringing our newest product to the market. We want Nigerians to have a feel of what brand new aircraft smells like and enjoy it. We believe that this country’s enormous potential is worth tapping into and that is why we are offering the best,” Ehimiaghe said.

Head, Sales & Marketing, Kemi Leke-Bamtefa, said aboard the SAA A330-300 aircraft, travellers would enjoy brand-new 46 Premium Business Class and 203 Economy Class seats with warm, neutral colours and cabin furnishings, leaving travellers feeling well rested after long flights.