Aero Contractors, Nigeria’s oldest carrier, has announced that it will begin shuttle services from Kaduna to Abuja in response to the yearnings of its customers, as travelers from the Northern state’s capital have shunned travelling by road due to potential security threats.
The shuttle services according to the airline owned by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) would commence from Tuesday, September 1, 2020. The airline said, providing the shuttle has become necessary as the business is picking up after the ravaging coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown, necessitating the increasing movement of people between the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja and Kaduna State.
Insecurity in northern Nigeria is deepening to a ridiculous level and that of Kaduna State has evolved to worrisome level with kidnappers, armed bandits, Boko Haram, Fulani Herdsmen among other blood thirsty gangs turning the state of Kaduna into their new killing field where innocent lives and property are destroyed with reckless abandon on the ever busy Abuja – Kaduna highway while both the state and federal government appear helpless.
The airline said its decision to shuttle between the two cities has become a huge relief to businessmen and women, administrators and many others who traverse between the two cities regularly whose travel plans have been hampered by security fears and the struggle to travel by train.
Captain Ado Sanusi, the Chief Executive Officer of Aero Contractors, said that the airline decided to respond to the call of its customers to introduce the shuttle service and also contribute in boosting the economy of Kaduna state with the service after the COVID-19 lockdown.
He said, “We studied the situation and realised that many Nigerians are no more travelling from Kaduna to Abuja by road due to security fears. We also realised that the train service cannot accommodate many people that would want to travel due to high demand; so, we have decided to introduce this shuttle service. A flight with our Bombardier Dash-8 aircraft will take about 30 minutes to get to Abuja, which is against two hours by rail and the cost starts from N15, 000, which is really a giveaway.
“In order to service our customers better, we decided to respond to the call to deploy aircraft between these two major cities. We are starting with two flights daily and will review as demand increases. We know that economic activities are picking up, especially in Kaduna after the COVID-19 lockdown and this is our contribution to the speedy economic recovery of the state and Nigeria,” Sanusi concluded.
