BusinessDay 15 Feb 2018

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C002D5556 Thursday 15 February 2018 20 BUSINESS DAY Air Peace deepens competition in aviation sector with commencement of Kano flights …takes delivery of 2nd Embraer 145 Stories by IFEOMA OKEKE Air Peace has deepened competition in the aviation sector with its inauguration of Lagos- Kano-Lagos and Kano flight services. The airline said the Kano flight operations is a very significant milestone in its vision to unite Nigeria through air travel and lift the nation’s economy through trade facilitation and massive job creation. Speaking during a brief ceremony to mark the inaugural flight, Allen Onyema, chairman/chief executive officer, Air Peace Limited who was represented by Chris Iwarah, corporate communications manager Air Peace, explained that the event accords with the airline’s strategy to expand operations in the north of Nigeria and connect other unserved or underserved cities of the nation. “Kano has long been recognised as the economic capital of the North of Nigeria. We are therefore hopeful that the extension of the flight services to the state will greatly positively impact the economy of the region,” Iwarah added. Onyema disclosed that the Kano launch would be followed with the commencement of flight operations to Yola in Adamawa State on February 15, and Freetown, Banjul, Dakar on February 19; adding that last year, the airline hugely expanded its capacity to serve the flying public with the increase of its fleet to size of 24 airplanes. The Air Peace Chairman also noted that on January 31 and February 8 the airline took delivery of two of the six Embraer 145 aircraft it recently acquired to serve cities with air transport difficulties under its new subsidiary, Airy Peace Hoper. He reiterated that the airline is more positioned to transform air travel experience in Nigeria, West Africa sub region and beyond. According to him, “We are reputed for our time performance and uncompromising stand on matters of safety. We promise to leverage the experience of our skilled staff and excellent business model to end the era of endless delays on the Lagos–Kano-Lagos and Kano -Abuja-Kano routes.” He appealed for patronage and support as the airline operate twice daily from Lagos into Kano and back, once from Kano into Abuja and back and try to deliver a whole new extinction the Kano route. Speaking earlier at the event, Muhammed Sanusi, Emir of Kano, stated that the Emirate would continue to support Air Peace to succeed on the Lagos–Kano route stating that the airline’s arrival into Kano would further engineer social and economic development. The Emir, who was represented by Ibrahim Sambo, stated that there a very few airlines operating into Kano, adding that now that Air Peace is here , the people of Kano are very happy. He said, “All the necessary support will be given to Air Peace to succeed. When Air Peace came to express its interest to fly to Kano, February 12 and 15 respectively as well as Freetown, Banjul and Dakar on February 19. A statement issued on Sunday by Chris Iwarah, said the arrival of the new aircraft marked 5N-BVD and named Chinonye Ezeani (Nee Onyema) was another proof that the airline was serious about its pledge to transform air travel in Nigeria, the West Coast of Africa and beyond. The arrival of Chinonye Ezeani (Nee Onyema), Air Peace said, “has proved beyond doubt that we are indeed serious about our pledge to end the travel nightmares of the unserved and underserved cities of Nigeria. It is our vision to democratise air travel in Nigeria. We are driven by the passion and belief that no one or city should be left behind. “As soon as we secure the approval of the regulatory authorities, we will start flight operations with our Embraer 145 jets. We will operate into the Nigeria Air Force (NAF) Base in Port Harcourt and connect routes such as Enugu-Kano-Enugu, Benin- Port-Harcourt-Benin, Port-Harcourt-Kano-Port- Harcourt, Lagos- Warri-Port-Harcourt- Warri-Lagos, Lagos-Warri-Abuja-Warri, Lagos- Kaduna-Lagos, Lagos-Sokoto-Lagos, Abuja-Sokoto-Abuja, Abuja-Bauchi- Abuja, Lagos- Markurdi-Lagos, Lagos-Jos-Lagos, among others. “It is a whole new experience we are bringing to air travel in Nigeria and the West Coast of Africa. We are pursuing our expansion project with a lot of grit. Our pledge to fix air travel in Nigeria and the West Coast of Africa is not an empty talk. In three years, we have increased our fleet to a size of 24 aircraft. We are quite serious about our business model. It is both sustainable and economically impactful. “We will continue to work flat out to deliver the best flight experience to our loyal guests and prioritise their safety and comfort.” The new aircraft is the fifth Air- Peace has received in the last 12 months alone. The airline took delivery of three Boeing 737 aircraft on February 21, June 16, December 24, 2017 and February 31, 2018 respectively. The carrier, which will soon launch flights to Dubai, Sharjar, London, Houston, Guangzhou, Mumbai and Johannesburg, is expecting the delivery of four more Embraer 145 jets, two Boeing 777s and a couple of Boeing 737 aircraft it recently acquired. Dana pledges to boost aviation capacity with more Nigerian pilots ...decorates captains, first officers we made it a matter of importance to give them accommodation. We hope you will have affordable fare and also sustain this route. Last week AirPeace pledged to end the travel difficulties of the nation’s unserved and underserved cities. The airline made the pledge on Friday when it took delivery of its second Embraer 145 jet in nine days. The airline received the first of six 50-seater new generation Embraer 145 jets it recently acquired on January 31 and immediately set up a subsidiary, Air Peace Hopper to manage its plan to connect routes airlines in the country shy away from. The new aircraft which arrived from the US touched down at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos at about 7.10 p.m. on Friday. It arrived as the carrier was finalising arrangements for the launch of its flights to Kano and Yola on The management of Dana Air has pledged to train more Nigerian Pilots year in year out as it decorates two captains and three first officers. Speaking while decorating the captains and first officers in Lagos , Segun Omole, the director of Dana Air flight operations, disclosed that most of the pilots were trained in Nigeria, some in South Africa and USA. Omole charged the newly decorated Captains and first officers to maintain the safety records Dana Air is known for. The director of Dana Air flight operations explained that by the time he was employed, the airline has only two Nigerian captains who were trained for the MD 83 aircraft and the rest were foreigners, adding that today 80 percent of the workforces are now Nigerians. He said Dana will continue to train new pilots on their own and will also bring in one or two from other airlines. Omole added that the airline want all their pilots to come in as first officers and also grow from there as those who grow with them have better experience. He explained further that the kind of bounding Dana Air enters with their pilots are the types the airline spends about $12000 – 13000 for initial training of the pilots which are deducted gradually from their salaries and within 18 months, all the money paid for the training are fully deducted and the pilot are free. Speaking also at the event, Obi Mbanuzuo, the chief operating of- L-R: Segun Omole, director of Flight operations; Sylvester Kalu, newly promote captain; Wahab Lawal, first officer; Ilesanmi Ayotunde; first officer and Obi Mbanuzuo, chief operating officer during the decoration of newly promoted captains and newly trained Nigerian Pilots recently in Lagos. ficer of Dana Air charged the newly decorated officers to put in their best for the airline. Mbanuzuo said the airline has no fewer than 16 Captains and about 17 co-pilots. He noted that the airlines has three planes flying, two abroad undergoing maintenance and another one in the country which will add to the number of airline’s fleets when the aircraft come back from maintenance this year . Speaking on behalf of other newly decorated officers, Kalu Sylvester thanked the management of Dana Air for the opportunity given to them to serve. He promised that they will be good ambassadors of the airline. Kalu also promised that he will strive with his colleagues to maintain Dana’s safety record, on-time departure and other notable qualities the airline is known for. The airline has also unveiled a special valentine promo for its esteemed guests. From 9th to 28th February 2018, guests travelling with their spouse or partner will only need to book a return ticket to get another free. The airline also partnered Divine Eagle Ministry, a non-governmental organization to put smiles in the faces of children from four orphanages – Ijamido orphanage, St Monica orphanage, Light for the lost orphanage and Favid orphanage with a facility tour at the Murtala Mohammed Airport 2, before treating the kids to good food and gifts. Kingsley Ezenwa, the Communications Manager of Dana Air, while chatting with the children at the event said, “Dana Air is committed to giving back to the society and in spending time with our families and loved ones this valentine, we felt the need to also remember and show love to the less privileged in our society.’’ Speaking further on the Valentine promo Ezenwa said, “Dana Air is enthusiastic about any initiative that unites the family or encourages love in the family and society. And the Valentine season provides the opportunity to further renew the bond of love in the family and between couples.’’
Thursday 15 February 2018 Harvard Business Review Global Business Perspectives CONNECTING THE WORLD ONE BUSINESS AT A TIME BUSINESS DAY 21 Russia, Turkey and Iran: It’s about the money In past years Turkey, a functioning democracy and NATO’s only Muslim-majority member, often was presented by the United States as a model for the autocratic Arab Middle East. When the Arab Spring buffeted the region, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey saw an opportunity to promote this idea among the protesters in Arab autocracies. The Arab Spring soon turned into winter, however, and Erdoğan’s relationship with NATO underwent a remarkable change. While retaining its NATO membership, Turkey has become part of the Russia-led triad engaged in peacemaking in the Syrian civil war outside the purview of the United Nations. To the alarm of its NATO partners, Turkey also has decided to purchase Russian S-400 missiles. The key to understanding this phenomenon is to examine the Turkish Republic’s geopolitics and economics. Domestically, the aborted military coup that rocked Turkey in July 2016 was a defining moment in the country’s foreign policy. As the first foreign leader to congratulate Erdoğan for crushing the coup, President Vladimir Putin of Russia won the Turkish leader’s gratitude. Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif of Iran had tweeted: “Stability and democracy in Turkey are paramount,” and President Hassan Rouhani told Erdoğan that the coup attempt was “a test to identify your domestic and foreign friends and enemies.” With a population of nearly 80 million with steadily rising President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey addresses the United Nations General Assembly, at the U.N. headquarters in New York, Sept. 19, 2017. (CREDIT: Chang W. Lee/The New York Times. living conditions, Turkey has urgent need of a dependable supply of natural gas. Its main sources are Iran and Russia, with the rest coming from Azerbaijan. Russia’s state-owned Gazprom supplies natural gas to several European nations through a pipeline stretching across Ukraine. To reduce its dependence on Ukraine for gas exports, Moscow came up with a plan called South Stream to transport natural gas to other parts of Europe. This project advanced until February 2014, when the Kremlin’s seizure of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine led the European Union to impose economic sanctions on Russia. This opened the door to Russian-Turkish economic cooperation. In December 2017 Putin canceled the South Stream project, replacing it with the $13.74 billion Turkstream gas pipeline, which will carry Russian natural gas to southern Europe via Bulgaria by 2020. Erdoğan, who earlier had joined efforts to depose President Bashar Assad of Syria, a Russian and Iranian client, has moderated his opposition to the country’s regime. Instead he has focused on blocking the creation of a Kurdish enclave in Syria. This has given Putin an opening to co-opt Turkey in his efforts to end the Syrian civil war on terms favorable to Assad. After hosting a Nov. 22 meeting with Erdoğan and Rouhani in Sochi, Russia, Putin said, “The militants in Syria have sustained a decisive blow and now there is a realistic chance to end the multiyear civil war.” He had conferred with Assad two days earlier. Notably, on Nov. 12 Turkey had announced a contract for the purchase of Russian S-400 missiles, ignoring the disapproval of other NATO members, particularly the United States. In mid-December Putin and Erdoğan suggested the Kazakh capital of Astana as a venue for conducting peace talks for Syria. On Dec. 20 Zarif joined them at Astana. As Turkey reversed its past policies, Iran and Turkey found 2017 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Distributed by The New York Times Syndicate themselves on the same side in the Syrian crisis. That has not always been the case. Since November 2002, when Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party won its first electoral victory, diplomatic relations between Turkey and Iran have improved—in 2009 Ankara invested as much as $4 billion in Iran’s South Pars gas field— but there have been periodic disagreements. In the Syrian civil war that began in 2012, Turkey and Iran backed opposite camps. When Saudi Arabia intervened militarily in Yemen’s civil war in March 2015, Erdoğan said in an interview with France 24 TV: “We support Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Yemen,” and added that “Iran and the terrorist groups must withdraw.” Nonetheless Erdoğan visited Tehran on April 1, 2015, to sign eight economic-cooperation agreements with Iran. When trade between the countries fell to $9.67 billion in 2016, he met with Rouhani for a joint news conference at which he emphasized that Turkey and Iran should join hands to bring about a peaceful outcome to the Yemeni crisis. Accompanied by Rouhani, Erdoğan has met with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to propose joint mediation efforts. Since then the Turkey-Iran entente has only strengthened. (Dilip Hiro, author of “A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Middle East” (Olive Branch Press, 2013), is based in London.)
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BusinessDay 15 Feb 2018

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