By Sade Williams
Days after it took delivery of its twelfth aircraft, a 114-capacity Boeing 737-500, Air Peace has announced its intention to commence flight operations from Lagos and Abuja into Sokoto on March 1.
A statement issued by the Corporate Communications Manager of Air Peace, Mr. Chris Iwarah said the development was the airline’s response to the yearnings of the people of Sokoto and other parts of the North to extend its exceptional flight services to the area.
Sokoto, the statement added, would be the fifth route the carrier would be launching in six months in line with its huge expansion plan.
The airline entered the Lagos-Benin-Lagos and the Abuja-Benin-Abuja routes in September 2016. Air Peace also started its Lagos-Uyo-Lagos flight operations in December 2016. On February 16, it made its first regional flight to Accra, Ghana.
“We are pleased to announce the commencement of our flight operations from Lagos and Abuja into Sokoto starting Wednesday, March 1. Sokoto is a strategic social, economic and religious centre reputed for its unbroken record of peaceful coexistence in the North.
“We are indeed happy to lead the new effort for seamless connection between the state and other parts of Nigeria. Our entry into the Sokoto route is a timely response to the yearnings of the government, good people of the state and the entire North to bring our spectacular flight services closer to them.
“Towards the end of 2016, we promised to connect Nigeria, Africa and other parts of the world. We have been delivering on our promise consistently since. Our massive expansion effort since the last quarter of 2016 has established us as the airline of choice on the Lagos-Benin-Lagos, Abuja-Benin-Abuja and Lagos-Uyo-Lagos routes. We also launched our daily Lagos-Accra-Lagos operations on February 16.
“We have now decided to spread our wings of peace to Sokoto before launching out to more regional and international destinations, including Abidjan, Douala, Niamey, Dakar, Johannesburg, South Africa, Dubai, Mumbai, Guangzhou-China, Atlanta and London.
“We are not just embarking on opening new routes, we are also acquiring more aircraft and setting up more offices. We now have offices at Plot C, Block 12E, Admiralty Way, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos, Stones & Furniture House, No. 286, Oron Road, by 4 Lane Junction, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, among other cities, to make our services much more accessible to the people. We will continue to seek ways to give our loyal customers and other air travellers the best flight experience,” Iwarah assured.