Amidst Nigeria’s aviation fuel woes and Arik salaries saga, Aero Contractors, one of Nigeria’s more popular airlines has announced it will be making a return to the airspace on Thursday after four months of suspending its services.
The airline had in August announced a temporary closure of its business amidst protests by retrenched workers who demanded for the payment of salary backlogs.
Earlier in the year, a $200 million debt crisis forced the Assets Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) to take over the management of the airline.
Vanguard reports that the airline however described the four-month self-imposed suspension as a strategic business realignment to reposition itself and return it to the path of profitability.
The resumption of services is also said to have been delayed due to labour issues with workers of the airline who were retrenched.
Aero Contractors chief executive officer, Capt Fola Akinkuotu said; “We are delighted to inform our esteemed customers that our schedule operation is back. Full flights will commence on Thursday, December 22 with consistent passenger demand despite the suspension of schedule services.”
Aero Contractors is making a return at a time the aviation sector is grappling with many issues such as occasional scarcity of aviation fuel which has been cited by many airlines as reason for delayed flights.
Another major airline, Arik Air, has also been facing labour issues. On Tuesday, workers staged protests over unpaid salaries and a new labour group, the United Labour Congress (ULC) has threatened to sustain the action until the airline meets the demands of its workers.
The return of Aero Contractors is expected to create an additional alternative and may possibly influence others to improve service delivery.
