Travel & Business News

Air Peace has inducted an additional Embraer 190, increasing its Embraer fleet to 18 aircraft and advancing its ongoing fleet expansion and renewal programme. The 96-seat aircraft touched down at Murtala Muhammed International Airport Terminal 2, Lagos, at approximately 17:00 local time on Wednesday, 7 October 2026, under the command of Capt. Mrs. Ibironke Rotimi-Olajide. The delivery represents the eighth (8th) airframe received by the carrier in 2026. With this induction, the airline's Embraer portfolio now comprises 18 units, including the E195-E2, for which Air Peace is the African launch customer. The expanding Embraer fleet complements the carrier's Boeing assets deployed across its domestic, regional and long-haul network. The airline disclosed it has also added five Boeing 737-800 aircraft this year. The newly delivered Embraer 190 is configured with 12 Business Class and 84 Economy Class seats. The type offers a 1-2 Business Class layout for enhanced person...

Etihad Airways and Ibom Air have concluded an interline agreement that will provide single-ticket connectivity between the United Arab Emirates carrier's West African gateways and five domestic points in Nigeria, effective from the launch of Etihad's operations to the region in March 2027. Under the arrangement, passengers arriving on Etihad services into Lagos and Accra will be able to connect onward via Ibom Air to Abuja, Uyo, Port Harcourt, Calabar and Enugu. The agreement also provides for connections between Accra and Abuja and Accra and Uyo. Through-checked baggage and unified booking will apply across both networks for the entire itinerary. The development extends Etihad's commercial reach beyond its two gateway cities into Nigeria's South-South, South-East and Federal Capital Territory markets, with Uyo and Calabar adding new single-ticket access points alongside Abuja, Port Harcourt and Enugu for business, visiting friends and relatives (VFR), and l...

(L - R) Mr. Ikechi Uko, Founder, Akwaaba Travel Market; Mr. Ohis Ehimiaghe, Regional Manager, Africa, Middle East and Indian Ocean, South African Airways; Mrs. Kemi Leke-Bamtefa, Country Manager, South African Airways; Mrs. Ida Jeng Njie, DG, Gambia Tourism Board; and Mr. Yinka Folami, NANTA President. South African Airways (SAA) has been conferred the Top African Airline Award at the 22nd Akwaaba African Travel Market, which held at Eko Hotels & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, from September 13 - 15, 2026. The distinction, determined through a keenly contested ballot involving travel trade practitioners and the general public, positioned the carrier prominently among the Top 100 Travel Icons in Nigeria recognized for excellence in travel. The announcement was made by Mr. Ikechi Uko, Publisher of African Travel Quarterly and Founder of Akwaaba Travel Market. The award presentation was done by Mrs. Ida Jeng Njie, Director-General of the Gambia Tourism Board and Mr. Yinka...

Prof. Obiora Okonkwo, CEO, United Nigeria Airlines. United Nigeria Airlines has entered a 10-year sponsorship agreement with the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) to fund the annual Chinua Achebe Prize for Fiction. The carrier will disburse N2 million annually, totaling N20 million over the duration of the commitment. The agreement was disclosed by the airline’s Executive Chairman, Prof. Obiora Okonkwo, following consultations with the President, Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), Dr. Usman Akanbi. The partnership is designed to provide financial stability to the award, which was launched in 2021 by the Anambra State Government in collaboration with ANA.  According to the association, the long-term funding framework will ensure continuity of the prize irrespective of fluctuations in government subventions. The award encountered budgetary constraints in the past three (3) years after the current Anambra administration discontinued its financial support. According...

Daisy Barro, Associate Editor, Travel & Business News “Airborne already? Wow.”   That was the exact thought that flashed through my mind as I looked out the panoramic window. I hadn't felt the violent jolt or stomach-drop I always associated with helicopters in movies. In fact, I hadn't even realized our wheels had left the tarmac until the ground began to shrink beneath us. This was my very first time flying in a helicopter, and it was happening aboard the maiden flight of Africa’s first Airbus H160. On Thursday, July 2, 2026, I had the incredible privilege of being among the first to fly on the first-ever Airbus H160 deployed in Africa. Bristow Helicopters, the launch customer of the aircraft type on the continent, procured five of these helicopters. By the time of this flight, the airline had taken delivery of four of the vessels, and I flew aboard the one bearing the registration number 5N-CFN. To be quite honest, I did not know what to expect on this flight. I ...

(L-R): Mr. Javier Alija, Vice President, Global Sales & Distribution, Ethiad Airways; Mr. Christopher Isaiah, Group General Manager, Commercial, APG Nigeria; Mrs. Gloria Atumu, General Manager, APG Nigeria; Mr. Olufemi Adefope, APG Nigeria Group Chairman; Mr. Khaleefa Mohamed Al Hammadi, Regional General Manager, Sales, Digital and Distribution, Ethiad Airways. APG Global Associates Network Limited has been appointed General Sales Agent for Etihad Airways in Nigeria, marking a key development in the UAE carrier’s expansion strategy in West Africa. The appointment was formalized with the signing of a Letter of Intent at the Legend Hotel, Lagos on Friday, July 25, 2026. The agreement positions APG Nigeria, the Nigerian affiliate of APG Inc., as the commercial representative for Etihad in Africa’s largest aviation and business travel market. Executives from both organizations attended the ceremony. Representing Etihad Airways were Mr. Javier Alija, Vice President, Global S...