South African Airway
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.
