…sets to expand operations to Abidjan, Conakry, Dakar
By Sade Williams
Mediew Airline Plc Chief Executive Officer, Alhaji Muneer Bankole, on Tuesday said the airline will on July 4, 2017, begin Lagos-Dubai route operations with two weekly flights on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
Speaking to aviation correspondents in Lagos, he said the Dubai route has been in the plans of the airline for sometimes, adding that it has concluded necessary arrangements with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Dubai and got the permit.
“We will be honest to tell you that Dubai has been in the front burner for a couple of months, the rule of the game is that you need to have what it takes, we’ve submitted the details, worked around the CAA, we’ve gotten the permit, put the employees on ground and now to open up the route, we will take delivery of of B777 and B737, this is one of the reasons I went to meet our partners and we are comfortable that by the grace of God, the aircraft will join our fleet soon.
“Dubai frequency will start with Tuesdays and Saturdays, and London will increase to three/four, as you know we operate on Sunday, Friday and Wednesday, now we are back to three as and as soon as the aircraft arrive, we will accommodate the schedule” he said.
Bankole said in the next two months, the airlines plans to spread its wings to the Francophone countries having successfully launched operations to Anglophone on the West Coast.
“As we grow up, we will continue to improve on our services and. We went to the West Coast, on the Anglophone, we are hoping to go to the Francophone, we will be in Dakar, Abidjan and Conakry in the next two months”, he added.
He disclosed that that Medview will soon deploy a B747 for the Hajj operations because of the capacity, saying; ‘we are doing very well, we have the numbers, Saudi authority has increased the number from 75 to 96, so Nigeria is back to the old numbers, We are a major player in Hajj, we have segmented the business, hajj season is here, in the next two months, we will be fully involved’.
Bankole, who disclosed further that two aircraft: B777 and B737-800 will in the next two months, join the airline’s fleet, 
expressed satisfaction that Medview is doing well on the London route , urging its marketers to work hard.
“As you know, every market has its own period and season, we are lucky we are stable on the route but the frequency is determined by the season. We will continue to run it till July when summer starts, what I am telling you is that come July, we will start Dubai. And this year, summer and Hajj is clashing and that is a serious business for us.
“The aircraft that we are taking delivery of is undergoing seat configuration at the Air France base, we are looking at bringing the B777 by the end of May or first week of June while the second one will be B737”, he added.
