Aero slashes airfare to N80,000 on all local routes 

Fears of an increase in airfare during the Yuletide trips may have been alayed as Aero Contractors has announced a reduction in its fares for all travellers on domestic routes this period.

It said on Tuesday that’s travellers would pay a minimum of N80,000 for local flights this festive season.

Managing Director of the airline, Ado Sanusi, announced this at a press conference on Tuesday, adding that the ticket price would apply to all Aero’s routes.

Sanusi said through the gesture billed to end in January next year, the company aimed to give back to Nigerians and support them the during the Christmas season.

Aero’s economy ticket to Abuja from Lagos was N99,643, while business class ticket stood at N189, 167, before the airfares reduction.

Sanusi said, “We have understood the pains Nigerians have been going through because of the economic hardship, the high prices of tickets, and the holiday season is nearby.

“So, Aero contractors has decided to announce a Christmas initiative, we call them, pocket-friendly Christmas prices.

“These prices are designed to allow Nigerians to travel to all our destinations without paying too much. And this is in the spirit of giving, which is the spirit of Christmas.

“We believe that as a company, this is just a very old history of understanding its customers. We believe it’s time for us to give back to our customers.

“Our prices will start from N80,000 to all of our destinations, and we intend to make it affordable to flying public.

“And this is to allow the flying public/families to meet their loved ones during this Christmas season.”

Sanusi said the aviation firm had studied the economic situation of the country, stressing that Aero would still be profitable with the price cut.

He also said the three aircraft in the company’s fleet would be sufficient for all its operations.

The managing director urged other airlines in the country to also “give back to the customers”.

Black box of crashed helicopter in P’Harcourt found, two passengers still missing 

A flight data recorder otherwise called back box of the helicopter that crashed in Rivers State two weeks ago has been recovered.

The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) confirmed this in a statement.

The helicopter operated by East Wind Aviation and hired by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited crashed on October 24 while travelling from the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) base in Port Harcourt.

The aircraft, carrying six passengers and two crew members, went down in the Atlantic Ocean near Bonny Finima, off the coast of Calabar, around 11:22am.

A week later, the NSIB reported that a fifth body was recovered from the site of the crash.

In a statement on Friday, Bimbo Oladeji, NSIB director, public affairs and consumer protection, confirmed that the flight data recorder (FDR) and cockpit voice recorder (CVR), the black box, were retrieved from the site.

Oladeji said the bureau, in collaboration with Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), and other search and recovery partners, coordinated efforts with both local and international teams to locate and retrieve the bodies of the deceased and essential components necessary for a full investigation.

“The FDR and CVR, commonly referred to as the aircraft’s ‘black box,’ was retrieved early this morning,” Oladeji said.

Air crash averted as Australian plane suffers engine failure 

A major air crash was averted on Friday after an Australian passenger plane suffered an engine failure.

The plane departing from Sydney, Australia, had experienced engine failure, causing the aircraft to circle before making a safe emergency landing, according to a post by Qantas on X.

Another report from Sydney Airport said a grass fire also ignited along one side of the runway but it was unclear whether the two incidents were related.

The fire had since reportedly been contained, though some flight delays were experienced.

Qantas did not disclose the number of passengers on board the twin-engine Boeing 737-800, which was bound for Brisbane, when the engine failed with a loud bang.

It also said there were no injuries from the incident.

“We understand this would have been a distressing experience for customers, and we will be contacting all customers this afternoon to provide support,” stated Qantas Chief Pilot, Captain Richard Tobiano.

“We will also be conducting an investigation into the cause of the engine issue.”