Effective Saturday, 25th March 2012, Arik Air is suspending further flights from Abuja to London Heathrow but its daily service from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos  will not be affected by this suspension. The slot issue which is forcing Arik Air to suspend the Abuja-London Heathrow service does not affect the Lagos-London Heathrow service.

Arik Air has therefore put measures in place to ensure that its daily service between Lagos and London Heathrow takes care of guests who are likely to be affected by the suspension of Abuja-London Heathrow flights. Passengers wishing to travel from Abuja to London can take advantage of the airline’s daily 7:15 am Abuja-Lagos flight for onward connection to the daily Lagos-London Heathrow service. The 7:00 am Lagos-Abuja service is also available for passengers arriving Lagos from London Heathrow early morning. Additionally, Arik Air has a shuttle service from the General Aviation Terminal to the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport for those connecting Lagos-London Heathrow from Abuja. Same service is also provided for Abuja-bound guests arriving Lagos from London Heathrow.

Arik Air’s Lagos-London Heathrow service inaugurated December 15, 2008 has become one of the most sought after services by Nigerians due to the equipment available to passengers on the route. Arik Air’s flagship Airbus A340-500 aircraft that is servicing the route is configured to take 36 passengers in the Premier class and 201 in the premium Economy class. The Premier class is complete with fully flat bed, an on-board massage system and bar area. The Premier Class unit aboard the A340-500 is one of the most spacious of any airline in service.

In the same vein, the issue of Yellow Card which led to the disruption of Arik Air services to Johannesburg early this month has been resolved and Arik Air now operates its daily Lagos-Johannesburg flight unimpeded. The South African authorities are now accepting Yellow Cards issued by the Nigerian authorities and passengers are no longer deported on the ground of having fake Yellow Cards.

Arik Air’s Executive Vice President/Managing Director, Mr. Chris Ndulue elaborated:

“We are constantly looking to offer our passengers the very best in value and comfort as we remain committed to the UK market. We know how important the Lagos-London Heathrow route is to Nigerians and would like to assure our guests that we are fully committed to servicing the route.

“Also, our guests on the Lagos-Johannesburg service now have nothing to fear as the Yellow Cards issued here in Nigeria are now accepted at the OT International Airport, Johannesburg.”