Payday at Arik Air
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This is not the first instance of drug smuggling found via Arik. The last one that I'm aware of was in London, and the drugs were found in the last row of seats, stashed where the life vest/jacket is supposed to be.
The captain was accused of that one. The FO was a spanish lady.
The captain was accused of that one. The FO was a spanish lady.
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Arik Air Pilots
I have not read any complaints about late salaries recently. Does this mean Arik air now pays on time or are u guys just sick of complaining of the same issue? I really hope its the fact that things are better out there. Oba1 i salute u sir 
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if you check out the 'net', its being reported on various sites including Nigerian press.
The fat one flies on LHR today, will he be subject to a quick frisk at LHR ?
The fat one flies on LHR today, will he be subject to a quick frisk at LHR ?
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I doubt she will be fired, in fact this will not even make any sort of press within NIgeria.
Nigerian Air Hostess Arrested with Cocaine at Heathrow, Articles | THISDAY LIVE
Nigerian arrested, charged for smuggling 4kgs of cocaine to UK
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You gotta love some of those comments, particulary those who suspect British Govt and others in planting the drugs because of spat with BA !
How is Abuja route performing ?
How is Abuja route performing ?
Hit back by her majesty's 'not so secret' service!
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Captplaystatn #923
"Could someone from "the compound" please answer my questions on post 923, as I fear they will vanish to 2nd last page courtesy of the talcum powder Mama "
I left Arik a year ago utterly frustrated by everything Nigerian. Late pay. Fighting to be reimbursed for expenses. Fighting for tickets home (to work never seemed to be a problem). Refusing to depart until my crew receives their night stop pay (the only leverage you will ever have). Ground workers trying to load old car engines in the cargo hold (full of oil??). Pedestrians walking across the runway while you are taking off or landing. Controllers lying about the weather. Pilots lying about their altitude and or their location. Unreliable navaids. Unbelievably dirty, bug infested motels. Constant threat of West African Malaria (the worst kind--it can kill you). Fire-trap base housing. Constant roar of generators (power outages)...
What I gave up: Some really good times with my fellow expats. Cold beer at the 'tree bar' (a parking lot with plastic tables and a few trees for shade). Late night talks over Don Simon and Sangria mix. I made some lifelong friends there. Some Nigerian pilots who were great people.
Someone else will have to answer your other questions, as I have been away too long to have current info.
I left Arik a year ago utterly frustrated by everything Nigerian. Late pay. Fighting to be reimbursed for expenses. Fighting for tickets home (to work never seemed to be a problem). Refusing to depart until my crew receives their night stop pay (the only leverage you will ever have). Ground workers trying to load old car engines in the cargo hold (full of oil??). Pedestrians walking across the runway while you are taking off or landing. Controllers lying about the weather. Pilots lying about their altitude and or their location. Unreliable navaids. Unbelievably dirty, bug infested motels. Constant threat of West African Malaria (the worst kind--it can kill you). Fire-trap base housing. Constant roar of generators (power outages)...
What I gave up: Some really good times with my fellow expats. Cold beer at the 'tree bar' (a parking lot with plastic tables and a few trees for shade). Late night talks over Don Simon and Sangria mix. I made some lifelong friends there. Some Nigerian pilots who were great people.
Someone else will have to answer your other questions, as I have been away too long to have current info.
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we know you will come regardless :)
Captplaystatn #923
"Could someone from "the compound" please answer my questions on post 923, as I fear they will vanish to 2nd last page courtesy of the talcum powder Mama "
I left Arik a year ago utterly frustrated by everything Nigerian. Late pay. Fighting to be reimbursed for expenses. Fighting for tickets home (to work never seemed to be a problem). Refusing to depart until my crew receives their night stop pay (the only leverage you will ever have). Ground workers trying to load old car engines in the cargo hold (full of oil??). Pedestrians walking across the runway while you are taking off or landing. Controllers lying about the weather. Pilots lying about their altitude and or their location. Unreliable navaids. Unbelievably dirty, bug infested motels. Constant threat of West African Malaria (the worst kind--it can kill you). Fire-trap base housing. Constant roar of generators (power outages)...
What I gave up: Some really good times with my fellow expats. Cold beer at the 'tree bar' (a parking lot with plastic tables and a few trees for shade). Late night talks over Don Simon and Sangria mix. I made some lifelong friends there. Some Nigerian pilots who were great people.
Someone else will have to answer your other questions, as I have been away too long to have current info.
"Could someone from "the compound" please answer my questions on post 923, as I fear they will vanish to 2nd last page courtesy of the talcum powder Mama "
I left Arik a year ago utterly frustrated by everything Nigerian. Late pay. Fighting to be reimbursed for expenses. Fighting for tickets home (to work never seemed to be a problem). Refusing to depart until my crew receives their night stop pay (the only leverage you will ever have). Ground workers trying to load old car engines in the cargo hold (full of oil??). Pedestrians walking across the runway while you are taking off or landing. Controllers lying about the weather. Pilots lying about their altitude and or their location. Unreliable navaids. Unbelievably dirty, bug infested motels. Constant threat of West African Malaria (the worst kind--it can kill you). Fire-trap base housing. Constant roar of generators (power outages)...
What I gave up: Some really good times with my fellow expats. Cold beer at the 'tree bar' (a parking lot with plastic tables and a few trees for shade). Late night talks over Don Simon and Sangria mix. I made some lifelong friends there. Some Nigerian pilots who were great people.
Someone else will have to answer your other questions, as I have been away too long to have current info.
In response to your "desperation" Captain PS3 ...
And as a current bloke plying the trade at Arik? I could give it to you short .... but i'll give it to you long. "All of those expat friends we sat under the tree bar with are gone." The ones that any of us would like to remember have hit their tolerance level and have found better work elsewhere..as 221340 has i'm sure?
my response to 221340:
Everything stated in the "negative" above still remains exactly as you left it.
Everything that you stated in the "positive" no longer exists on the scale it once was.
Arik not only has had a revolving door of expats but it has had a revolving door of expat pilot personalities. Those that have come and/or stay are willing to make slight concessions as you have seen listed in prior postings. Most latecomers to arik are not necessarily desparate pilots but pilots who enjoy time off. Or they enjoy a little cash and don't mind a little B.S. ??
People don't realise that to most arik staff( non-expat ) the company "arik" is basically a game to be played. A game that involves a lot of bluffs, slight of hand, B.S. and power moves. Those expats who make it work are those who merely have the energy to put a smile on their face and show up. As i have stated before, "It is completely out of your control and it is what you make of it."
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I left Arik a year ago utterly frustrated by everything Nigerian
Or I could have been the expat pilot thrown in a Nigerian jail who had the forethought to ring the UK embassy and get help. Who threw him there? The Chief Pilot. Why? He got short changed on money from Arik.
Or I could have been the crew at Maidugury when 700 people were slaughtered in the streets. I had been there just the week previous on an overnight. Or my TCAS could have failed on the several times it went off in the flight levels due to ATC mistakes.
Looking back, I'm glad I took lots of pictures, and I'm glad I'm not there anymore, and more confident that I'll never be there again. I've never been so mad at a company that I worked for than Arik during my last days there. It's much more relaxing where I'm at now.
Merry Xmas to any of my brothers and sisters still at Arik, and may you soon find your way home for good.
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Cheers guys Happy Xmas,& good luck to you for 2012, whether you are where you want to be, or trying hard to be somewhere else.
As Forrest (or rather his Mom) said "life is like a box of chocolates, you just never know what you are gonna get"
I wish you Hazelnut Praline !
Happy Xmas,& good luck to you for 2012, whether you are where you want to be, or trying hard to be somewhere else.As Forrest (or rather his Mom) said "life is like a box of chocolates, you just never know what you are gonna get"
I wish you Hazelnut Praline !
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Finally, Google Earth updated its aerial photos of the Lagos airport, with a CRJ900 and Q400 on the Arik Maintenance hangar ramp. No blurry clouds anymore! Pic was taken summer 2010, because the "new-new" office building was under construction.
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
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i love this place!!
Taka a read at this hot mess for a good laugh.
Arik fights delays with ultra-modern control centre
Everything the "snr duty mgr" states is classic and flat out false.
It is the standard "it is everyones fault but my own"
Arik fights delays with ultra-modern control centre
Everything the "snr duty mgr" states is classic and flat out false.
It is the standard "it is everyones fault but my own"
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Lagos and Abuja are quoted as being the only places where 45 min turn-rounds can be achieved and the other stations its not possible due to poor facilities and infrastructure and they actually want to improve on the 45 mins in Abuja and Lagos.
Well from first hand experience I find quite the opposite the out stations other than Abuja and Lagos are fast and Abuja and Lagos are the 2 worst places to turn-around an aircraft and delays get picked up there...so this manager is obviously so hands on as to the real situation at Arik.
Well from first hand experience I find quite the opposite the out stations other than Abuja and Lagos are fast and Abuja and Lagos are the 2 worst places to turn-around an aircraft and delays get picked up there...so this manager is obviously so hands on as to the real situation at Arik.
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Article says delays are more to do with airport facilities than Arik ops.
What's the truth if it is flat out false? Inquiring minds want to know.
50/50 (Arik/Airport ops), 60/40 etc? We know there are inefficiencies in Nigerian airport ops, so delays can't be compleltlety Arik's fault, can it??? 
What's the truth if it is flat out false? Inquiring minds want to know.
50/50 (Arik/Airport ops), 60/40 etc? We know there are inefficiencies in Nigerian airport ops, so delays can't be compleltlety Arik's fault, can it???
Everything the "snr duty mgr" states is classic and flat out false.
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allAfrica.com: Nigeria: Passengers Groan Over Flights Cancellations, Delays
It's not just Arik unfortunately, so really noway to avoid this issue.
It's not just Arik unfortunately, so really noway to avoid this issue.
Abuja/Lagos — Flight delays, rescheduling and cancellations are now a common feature with the Nigerian aviation industry and air passengers are miffed at what some of them describe as the airlines' insensitivity.
Some airlines that have experienced flight delays, rescheduling and cancellation in recent times include; Aero Contractors; IRS; Dana Air; and Arik Air among others.
Just yesterday, Aero rescheduled a flight from Abuja to Lagos. It announced in a text: "This is to inform you that our flight AJ136 from Abuja to Lagos on the 4th of January 2012 has been rescheduled to 20:50HRS due to operational reasons."
Aero had Tuesday cancelled another flight from Enugu to Lagos and advised Enugu passengers to go to Owerri to board another flight to Lagos.
Last Friday, passengers who are supposed to fly IRS flight IS 3308 from Abuja International Airport to Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, were stranded at the Abuja airport for hours.
The departure time for the flight was 3.15pm local time and up till 9.30pm there was no flight to convey the passengers, Daily Trust gathered.
A passenger, Ibrahim Mohammed Jirgi, the MD/CEO of Triple Cee Media Limited, who was supposed to follow the fight complained and demanded an apology and compensation from the airline.
Another passenger, a deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Suleiman Barau said he was dissatisfied with the treatment.
Other passengers affected include a former deputy governor of Kebbi State, Alhaji Mohammed Suleiman Argungu and some senior police officers.
Argungu said: "We are disappointed with the treatment. There was no apology and no explanation given to us."
It is almost the same story with all the other airlines. A cross section of passengers who spoke to our correspondent yesterday at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport 11 (MMA2) expressed displeasure over the treatment from airlines.
"All the airlines are guilty of this ugly situation and have perhaps shown no remorse," a customer who preferred to be identified as Charlse O told our correspondent at Murtalla Mohammed International Airport 11.
"It is appalling the way the airlines delay or reschedule flights; sometimes without notice to passengers. It is unfair to us," said Mr. Joe A.
Aero Contractors, Arik Air and Dana Air didn't reply to our reporter's enquiry on the issue.
But IRS spokesman Yemi Dada told our correspondent that IRS airline flights are cancelled, delayed or rescheduled due to bad weather.
Also he said sometimes flights are cancelled due to VIP movement and once a delay enters into an airline schedule it rolls over because an aircraft flies several routes.
He said IRS briefs passengers if flights are delayed or rescheduled.
"Sometimes you may have an aircraft that has a technical problem, so you need to organise a rescue aircraft which probably was on another schedule. It is a common practice across the world. If a flight is cancelled we refund our passengers, if it is a link flight, we accommodate our passengers," he said.
An aviation engineer who works for Arik but wouldn't want his name in print explained that there are a number of reasons flights are cancelled and or delayed.
He said: "For instance by this time of the year, several flights are delayed, rescheduled or cancelled due to bad weather.
"For instance, on Sunday, Monday even Tuesday this week we experienced bad weather in different parts of the country. And when you have very low visibility due to harmattan dust, flights are cancelled for safety reasons. Some are reschedule to a time when the weather is good for flight operations.
"Another reason is that, airlines use an aircraft for several trips in a day. For instance, one aircraft could be schedule for 3, 4 or 5 flights per day. If one of the flights is delayed (due to air traffic congestion, late refueling, obstruction on the runway etc), the rest flights of the aircraft are scheduled and other routes are also affected - a multiplier effect down the chain.
"Talking about blocked runway, some few months ago a military aircraft had a bust tyre on the tarmac right at the interface between the local and international airport. On that day Arik Air's aircraft came from Accra, Ghana by 10am and was billed to depart for Jos by 11am. But because the military aircraft wasn't fixed early, the flight was delayed till 4pm when the aircraft was removed from the runway. This wasn't the fault of Arik, it wasn't the fault of weather and it wasn't the fault of airport management."
He also noted that sometimes certain flights are delayed to have all passengers from the connecting flights catch up with a flight.
He said: "This occurs mostly on international routes because airlines don't want to keep passengers in hotels and cut cost. Arik does this.
"Not fuelling aircraft on time also delays flights. For instance, Arik Air no longer enjoys fuel on credit from marketers because of its huge debts to them. It is no longer credit worthy before oil marketers. Thus, whenever Arik fails to pay for fuel in good time, the aircraft is delayed."
He further said that "at theyuletide period too, most airlines experience flight hitches because most of the crew members go on holidays particularly, expatriate pilots. This sees the airlines putting same crew on several flights and this affects flight schedules limiting flights to important ones.
"Another reason for cancelling flight is when an airline isn't going to get fuel in the destination it is going and can't fuel to and fro at economic rate, the flight is cancelled. This is because, if fuel is too much in the aircraft, you can't have many passengers on board."
Some airlines that have experienced flight delays, rescheduling and cancellation in recent times include; Aero Contractors; IRS; Dana Air; and Arik Air among others.
Just yesterday, Aero rescheduled a flight from Abuja to Lagos. It announced in a text: "This is to inform you that our flight AJ136 from Abuja to Lagos on the 4th of January 2012 has been rescheduled to 20:50HRS due to operational reasons."
Aero had Tuesday cancelled another flight from Enugu to Lagos and advised Enugu passengers to go to Owerri to board another flight to Lagos.
Last Friday, passengers who are supposed to fly IRS flight IS 3308 from Abuja International Airport to Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, were stranded at the Abuja airport for hours.
The departure time for the flight was 3.15pm local time and up till 9.30pm there was no flight to convey the passengers, Daily Trust gathered.
A passenger, Ibrahim Mohammed Jirgi, the MD/CEO of Triple Cee Media Limited, who was supposed to follow the fight complained and demanded an apology and compensation from the airline.
Another passenger, a deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Suleiman Barau said he was dissatisfied with the treatment.
Other passengers affected include a former deputy governor of Kebbi State, Alhaji Mohammed Suleiman Argungu and some senior police officers.
Argungu said: "We are disappointed with the treatment. There was no apology and no explanation given to us."
It is almost the same story with all the other airlines. A cross section of passengers who spoke to our correspondent yesterday at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport 11 (MMA2) expressed displeasure over the treatment from airlines.
"All the airlines are guilty of this ugly situation and have perhaps shown no remorse," a customer who preferred to be identified as Charlse O told our correspondent at Murtalla Mohammed International Airport 11.
"It is appalling the way the airlines delay or reschedule flights; sometimes without notice to passengers. It is unfair to us," said Mr. Joe A.
Aero Contractors, Arik Air and Dana Air didn't reply to our reporter's enquiry on the issue.
But IRS spokesman Yemi Dada told our correspondent that IRS airline flights are cancelled, delayed or rescheduled due to bad weather.
Also he said sometimes flights are cancelled due to VIP movement and once a delay enters into an airline schedule it rolls over because an aircraft flies several routes.
He said IRS briefs passengers if flights are delayed or rescheduled.
"Sometimes you may have an aircraft that has a technical problem, so you need to organise a rescue aircraft which probably was on another schedule. It is a common practice across the world. If a flight is cancelled we refund our passengers, if it is a link flight, we accommodate our passengers," he said.
An aviation engineer who works for Arik but wouldn't want his name in print explained that there are a number of reasons flights are cancelled and or delayed.
He said: "For instance by this time of the year, several flights are delayed, rescheduled or cancelled due to bad weather.
"For instance, on Sunday, Monday even Tuesday this week we experienced bad weather in different parts of the country. And when you have very low visibility due to harmattan dust, flights are cancelled for safety reasons. Some are reschedule to a time when the weather is good for flight operations.
"Another reason is that, airlines use an aircraft for several trips in a day. For instance, one aircraft could be schedule for 3, 4 or 5 flights per day. If one of the flights is delayed (due to air traffic congestion, late refueling, obstruction on the runway etc), the rest flights of the aircraft are scheduled and other routes are also affected - a multiplier effect down the chain.
"Talking about blocked runway, some few months ago a military aircraft had a bust tyre on the tarmac right at the interface between the local and international airport. On that day Arik Air's aircraft came from Accra, Ghana by 10am and was billed to depart for Jos by 11am. But because the military aircraft wasn't fixed early, the flight was delayed till 4pm when the aircraft was removed from the runway. This wasn't the fault of Arik, it wasn't the fault of weather and it wasn't the fault of airport management."
He also noted that sometimes certain flights are delayed to have all passengers from the connecting flights catch up with a flight.
He said: "This occurs mostly on international routes because airlines don't want to keep passengers in hotels and cut cost. Arik does this.
"Not fuelling aircraft on time also delays flights. For instance, Arik Air no longer enjoys fuel on credit from marketers because of its huge debts to them. It is no longer credit worthy before oil marketers. Thus, whenever Arik fails to pay for fuel in good time, the aircraft is delayed."
He further said that "at theyuletide period too, most airlines experience flight hitches because most of the crew members go on holidays particularly, expatriate pilots. This sees the airlines putting same crew on several flights and this affects flight schedules limiting flights to important ones.
"Another reason for cancelling flight is when an airline isn't going to get fuel in the destination it is going and can't fuel to and fro at economic rate, the flight is cancelled. This is because, if fuel is too much in the aircraft, you can't have many passengers on board."
Any iota of truth in this report of a VK and W3 Joint venture...or just newspapers trying to make a couple of bucks.
Arik denies merger with Air Nigeria
Arik denies merger with Air Nigeria