Daily Independent Online.
*
Thursday, June 17, 2004.
Iberia Airlines reopens Madrid-Lagos
route
By Shola Ogunode,
Aviation
Reporter
A founding member
of the Oneworld airline alliance, Iberia Airlines, has reopened its lucrative
Madrid-Lagos route with three weekly flights.
Disclosing this to
journalists at a press briefing in Lagos on Wednesday, the company’s
International Press Manager, Mr. Jamie Perez-Guerra, explained, “Due to
the promising Nigerian economy and the Lagos route being the most lucrative in
Africa, we have decided to re-launch the Madrid-Lagos route.”
The thrice-weekly
flights, which previously took more than eight hours to travel between the
capital cities, with connections in Paris and Milan when it operated in Nigeria
until 1992, would now fly direct for only five hours.
With the use of the
comfortable and roomy 200-seat Boeing 757 to cover the route, connecting
flights to other European and the Americas would become more affordable and on
schedule.
Speaking also at
the event, the General Manager, Nigeria, Mr. Gerardo Ramos, emphasised that the
new route is Iberia’s latest on the African continent. “We already
fly direct from Spain to Cairo, Egypt, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, Casablanca,
Tangiers, in Morocco, Dakar, Senegal and Johannesburg, South Africa.”
“Under the
code sharing arrangements, Iberia also reaches Nairobi, Kenya, Capetown, Durban
and Port Elizabeth, in South Africa,” he added.
It was gathered
that ahead of its re-launch, there have been a high turnout of travelers to its
corporate head office in Victoria Island to book for tickets following its
lowest fare promotions.
With 2003 revenues
of 4.62 billion euros, net earnings of more than 145 million euros, and an
operating profit of 160 million euros, it has become Europe’s most
profitable scheduled carrier.
The airline, which
is a member of the Oneworld airline alliance along with Aer Lingus, American
Airlines, British Airways, Cathy Pacific, Finnair, LanChile and Quantas,
operates some 1,000 flights daily to 100 destinations around the world along
with its franchise partner, Iberia Regional/Air Nostrum.
“Our IB 3746
will leave Madrid at 5.50pm and reach Lagos at 9.55pm. The return flight,
IB3747 will depart from Lagos at 11.10pm and reach the Spanish capital the
following day at 5.15am. The flying times will facilitate connections to
Iberia’s network of flights to and from Europe and the Americas,”
Jaime stated.
