By Louis Ibah, in Accra, Ghana
Air Peace Limited has commenced its regional and international route expansion programme with an inaugural flight between Nigeria and Ghana. The airline launched the Nigeria – Ghana flight operation on Thursday (yesterday) making use of a Boeing 737 500 series aircraft flown by Capt. Victor Egonu. The aircraft which took off at about 8.05am from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos touched down at the Kotoka International Airport, Accra at about 7.43am Ghana time (approximately 8.43am Nigerian time) with passengers on board cheering and clapping their hands in applaud to the feat achieved by the airline. The airline said it would be operating daily flights between the two countries.
A passenger, Abdul Ndayako told Daily Sun that frequent flyers on the route like him had every reason to be excited as the entry of Air Peace now gives them new options following the exit of Dana Air and Aero Contractors from the route last year. “We now have another option because since Aero and Dana left, only Medview has been operating optimally because Arik is having crisis and you can see the patronage as the aircraft is almost 90 per cent filled up with passengers on this first flight,” Ndayako said. On hand at the Accra airport to welcome the new airline was the Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Mrs. Adekunbi Sonaike-Ayodeji, and officials from the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, Ghana Airport Authirty, and top officials of UBA Plc that bankrolled the new route project. Speaking at a brief ceremony at the airport in Accra, the Chief Operating Officer of Air Peace, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Olajide thanked the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana, UBA Plc, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, and Ghana Civil Aviation Authority for assisting in making the airline’s first foray outside Nigeria a reality. “The launch of our Lagos-Accra-Lagos route opens a new chapter in our spectacular flight operations and We are quite hopeful that our great experience here will guide our plan to expand into other regional and international routes in the days and months ahead,” Olajide said. The Nigerian High Commissioner, Mrs. Sonaike-Ayodeji in her speech said the entry of Air Peace has assisted Nigeria reciprocate some of its Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASA) agreements just as it would deepen trade relations between the two countries. Head for UBA Ghana, Mrs. Abiola Bawuah lauded the airline for partnering with the bank on its foray into the Ghana market. She said the bank had a presence in 19 African countries and was always ready to assist in providing the funding for the growth and expansion of African airlines.