DANA AIR COMMENCES FLIGHT OPERATIONS

 

Lagos, November 4, 2008 

 

Nigeria’s newest carrier, Dana Airlines Limited, today announced that it will begin commercial flight operations on Monday, November 10, 2008, following the award of its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authorities on Wednesday. 

 

The AOC is a commercial licence or an official document issued to an airline by its national safety regulator. It attests to the airline's competence regarding its ability to conduct a safe operation and clearly defines who is in charge of its safety oversight (normally the national aviation authority). It therefore constitutes the key link to safety oversight. 

 

According to Dana Air’s Chief Executive Officer, Jacky Hathiramani, “We will begin operations on Monday, November 10 with two flights daily from Lagos to Abuja and from Abuja to Lagos. Passengers can look forward to a more pleasurable experience flying with us; from our easy and convenient online booking system to our superior in-flight services.” 

 

Mr. Hathiramani also said, “Our fleet currently consists of two Boeing MD83 aircrafts which have a higher number of passenger seats and a larger cargo capacity than currently available. We will offer a two class service, with 12 seats in our dedicated “Smart Class” business cabin, and 128 seats in our spacious Traveller class economy cabin. Before the end of the year we will take delivery of two more Boeing MD83 aircrafts. We will also be expanding our route to include the cities of Port-Harcourt, Enugu and Kano.” 

 

Last month Dana Air announced that it had completed a series of training programmes for staff including engineers, station managers, flight dispatchers, ticketing and reservation officers and cabin crew. Mr. Hathiramani however noted that training at Dana Air will be an on-going process; another batch of twenty-five cabin crew are currently undergoing training and two of its four Nigerian ‘First Officers’ departed Lagos for the United States of America for a five-week training course last Saturday.

 

A subsidiary of Dana Group of Companies, Dana Air strives to be Nigeria’s first new world carrier, offering premium services at an affordable rate. It will provide passenger, cargo and charter services between capital cities and regional centres.