Arik Air to Introduce Angolan Link

Nigerian carrier Arik Air is to further expand its international network this month with the launch of flights between Lagos and the Angolan capital Luanda. The airline will offer a twice weekly flight on the route from December 13, becoming the first Nigerian carrier to operate scheduled services between the two cities. The flight will be operated by a two class Boeing 737-800 with 16 Business Class and 132 Economy seats and has been timed to offer good connections between Lagos and the airline’s other international destinations.

“We are pleased to announce the launch of operations to a new destination, our second sub-Saharan and ninth African point,” said Dr Michael Arumemi-Ikhide, Group CEO and President Arik Air. “Luanda is a strategically important capital for the oil & gas and extraction industry and this new route offers increased availability and capacity to the capital as well as introducing the first route between Lagos and Luanda.”

The flight will be operated under a codeshare arrangement with TAAG Angola, the flag carrier of the African state. “This codeshare agreement with TAAG is the first of its kind that Arik Air has undertaken,” explained Dr Michael Arumemi-Ikhide. “We can offer TAAG access to an extensive West African and Nigerian network and, similarly, it can offer our passengers the ability to utilise its domestic network and regional network incorporating 23 destinations in southern, eastern and West Africa.”