Ibom Air wet leases two planes from Egypt Air over capacity gap

Abiola Seun

Ibom Air said it wet-leased two new jets from Egypt Air to bridge the capacity gaps in the Nigeria’s aviation sector.

In a press statement by Group Manager Marketing, Ibom Air, Aniekan Essienette, the jets will hit the Nigerian skies from Wednesday 30th June 2021.

Essienette said ibom Air is also currently in negotiations with Airbus to procure a fleet of brand new A220s for deliveries commencing fourth quarter 2022.

“Ibom Air’s two new Airbus A220 aircraft will hit the skies, bringing much needed capacity, more comfort, enhanced safety and increased reliability to the domestic air travel market.

“The carrier chose to bridge the urgent capacity gap by wet-leasing these two new jets from Egypt air as a stop-gap measure and on Wednesday, 30th June 2021, Ibom Air’s two new Airbus A220 aircraft will hit the skies, bringing much needed capacity, more comfort, enhanced safety and increased reliability to the domestic air travel market.

Both new leased aircraft are the result of the Airline’s decision to fast track its fleet development plan in order to respond to a surge in passenger numbers, which stretched the capacity of its CRJ900 fleet to the maximum.

With the arrival of both leased jets, the airline is now able to provide the much-needed capacity sought by its fast-increasing clientele.

Ibom Air’s passengers on the Lagos-Abuja route can now experience 3 flights each way daily, in the comfort of the A220. The A220 will also serve the Uyo to Lagos and Uyo to Abuja routes, while the airline’s fleet of 5 CRJ900s fill up any gaps, providing adequate capacity on all the other routes.

According to the Airline’s COO, Mr. George Uriesi, “we are pleased to introduce the Airbus A220, one of the most advanced passenger jets in the world, into the Nigerian domestic market.

“While our fleet of Bombardier CRJ900s did a splendid job powering the airline during its start-up phase, we had to adjust our business strategy and fast track our move to higher capacity aircraft. With the introduction of the A220, this capacity squeeze will be adequately addressed.”