Dana Air passenger traffic is set to quadruple with the delivery of another aircraft to its fleet as its partnership with Asky begins to yield positive results.
The aircraft a B737-700 which arrived Lagos Monday is part of the initial partnership with the Asky on the aircraft lease aspect, according to the Chief Operating Officer for Dana Air, Mr. Obi Mbanuzuo, Dana would not only interline, it would also codeshare with Asky.
“We will go further to entrench it with a codeshare,this is the first part of the agreement we mentioned back in February, you will come to Dana air you will say you want to go to Cotonou, you don’t need to go to Asky, you can come to us, we will provide you same service, dana in that sense will be a marketing carrier, while they are the operating carrier. Tomorrow for example, if we codeshare with them on Lagos Abuja, Dana air will fly from Lagos Abuja, Asky will be a marketing carrier, what does that do, it gives benefits to Dana air and Asky as well”.
“Since July surprisingly we are also carrying with our two airplanes, we are almost carrying more what we use to carry with three of our aero planes before, so this aircraft coming in is actually going to help us increase”.
Mbanuzuo said hopefully midway into 2019, the airline may have codeshare with other domestic airlines as discussions were ongoing, ” because Dana Air’s plans right now is sometimes not necessarily spreading our own operations in terms of stations, we want to reach out, I want people to come into our offices, go to our website, buy tickets to fly to sokoto, we don’t fly to sokoto right now and we discussing with a particular airline now domestically and in return, will sell my Owerri, so we are on that path and is something we have recognized and we are working on it”.
On the settlement of the proceeds and having a clearing house,he said IATA is trying to work out something for the domestic carriers who show interest in such alliance to boost their operations.
“In the last two IATA had a meeting locally where they are trying to do a local clearing house that would help to move things further. We have something similar with Medview and this is done local on one to one basis, he phones me, I phone him for tickets, i think what IATA is trying to do will help. After we signed the first one with Medview, I can tell you for sure, two other airlines have approached us”.
Mbanuzuo noted that one of its two of its aircraft which were flown out to France for maintenance would be brought back to the country this week, adding the new B737-700 would be deployed on the Abuja flown by Asky pilots who apparently are Nigerians with Dana cabin crew on all the flights.
” it is going to be temporary, we call this damp lease they have some of their cabin crew, we also have some Nigerians in training”.
