Aero begins Abuja-Kaduna shuttle operations Tuesday

An airline operator, the Aero Contractors, is set to begin shuttle services from Kaduna to Abuja from Tuesday, Sept. 1, our correspondent reports.

The Chief Executive Officer of Aero Contractors, Capt. Ado Sanusi, confirmed the development in a statement issued in Lagos on Friday.

Sanusi said the operation was in response to the yearnings of airline customers.

He said “the airline realised that the train service cannot accommodate many people that would want to travel, due to high demand.

“So, it has decided to introduce this shuttle service.”

The airline chief said Aero would deploy its Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft and would fly from Kaduna to Abuja twice daily – in the morning and in the evening.

He said: “A flight with our Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft will take about 30 minutes to get to Abuja, which is against two hours by rail.

“In order to serve our customers better, we decided to respond to the call to deploy aircraft between these two major cities.”

“We are starting with two flights daily and will review as demand increases.”

“We know that economic activities are picking up, especially in Kaduna after the COVID-19 lockdown.”

“This is our contribution to the speedy economic recovery of the state and Nigeria.”

The airline chief noted that travellers from some northern states had shunned travelling by road due to security threats.

“After shunning travelling by road, Nigerians from Kaduna resorted to travelling to Abuja by rail but the rail system can no more meet the high demand of commuters, thereby making air shuttle necessary.

“The airline’s decision to shuttle between the two cities has become a huge relief to business people, administrators and many others,” he stated.