Arik Air, Nigeria’s leading commercial airline successfully launched its services from Lagos to Johannesburg yesterday, 1 June 2009. The inaugural flight departed Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos at the scheduled time of 9.35pm and after taxi, was airborne at 10.06pm local time. It arrived at Oliver Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg at 4.20 am local time on Tuesday 2 June, 30 minutes ahead of schedule.

The arrival of the airline’s inaugural flight in Johannesburg, the airline’s second long haul destination, marks another milestone in the airline’s international expansion. Last December 2008, the airline successfully launched daily flights between Lagos and London Heathrow.

“With our innovative products and services, Arik Air is undoubtedly leading the way,” said Managing Director, Michael McTighe, as the Johannesburg-bound aircraft prepared for departure on Monday evening. “As promised, we are operating a new Airbus A340-500 aircraft on the Lagos-Johannesburg route. The aircraft and our on-board service have delighted guests on our daily Lagos-London Heathrow service and we can see that guests on our inaugural flight to Johannesburg this evening are excited by the prospect of a superb Arik Air experience to South Africa,” he added.

On its A340-500 aircraft, Arik Air offers its Premier Class guests 36 extra-wide seats that convert into fully lie-flat beds with in-seat massager, a bar and lounge area in which to socialise and relax, individual audio and video-on-demand entertainment and large 17”personal screens. In the 201-seat Economy Class, guests enjoy more comfort and legroom than in the economy class of any other airline on the route. Economy Class guests can also enjoy seat-back personal entertainment while being looked after by a team of Nigerian and international cabin crew.

Arik Air's General Manager Sales & Marketing Suraj Sundaram says: “We believe that air travellers seek value for money, especially if they are travelling long haul. Not only does Arik Air deliver this to our guests, but they can also benefit from convenient connections to Arik Air’s extensive domestic and growing regional network.”

Arik Air’s daily flights on the Lagos-Johannesburg service are timed conveniently. Flights depart Lagos at 9.35pm each evening, arriving Johannesburg at 4.50am the following morning. Return flights depart daily from Johannesburg at 1.45pm in the afternoon, arriving Lagos at 7.00pm the same day (all times local).

Arik Air is Nigeria’s leading commercial airline. It currently operates a fleet of 27 state-of-the art regional, medium haul and long haul aircraft. The airline serves 19 airports across Nigeria as well as Accra (Ghana), Cotonou (Benin), Niamey (Niger), London Heathrow (UK) and Johannesburg (South Africa).

The airline currently operates a combined total of 120 daily flights from its hubs in Lagos and Abuja.

It employs a workforce of 1,400.