Aero set to return aircraft from France; to roll out second 737-5 after C-Check

REPORTS are rife that Aero Contractors may be rolling out a second aircraft , its Boeing 737-400 with registration number 5N-BOC from its maintenance facility in a fourth night if all goes according to plan.

This is just as the airline is set to receive another of its aircraft, a Boeing 737-500, which was taken to France for C-checks about a year ago back into the country by this weekend.

The B737-500 aircraft, which was taken out forC-Check maintenance in France by previous management could not return as planned due to paucity of funds.

Sanusi, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the airline, however, confirmed the developments on phone with our correspondent.

Nigerianflightdeck.com gathered from a highly placed source that the airline had paid about 30 staff declared redundant in late 2017 about N70m their outstanding salaries and severance packages in the last one month.

Aero Contractors currently has two aircraft; B737-500 and Dash 8 in its fleet, but with the impending arrival and maintenance of the two aircraft, its fleet would increase to four.

On the aircraft presently in its maintenance hangar facility at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos that would be rolled out in the next two weeks, it would be the second of its airplanes that would be maintained in its facility since January 2018 when it equally carried out a C-check in one of its aircraft at the same facility.

Sanusi, posited that the B737-500 aircraft would arrive the country by this weekend while the other B737-400 currently under its maintenance facility at the Lagos Airport would join its fleet in the next two weeks.

This is apart from another helicopter that is scheduled to arrive Nigeria from Malaysia on Thursday, thereby increasing its rotary wing fleet to three.

Commenting on the payment of severance packages and outstanding salaries to the staff declared redundant, Sanusi said the aim of the management was to disbursed about N50m monthly to the affected staff and assured that some of them would be recalled as its fleet of aircraft increases.

He said: “It is true that our aircraft, which went out for maintenance in France would be returning to the country by this weekend. Apart from this, we are currently carrying out maintenance on another B737-400 aircraft, hopefully would be out of maintenance yard in the next two to three weeks.

“Also, on the payment of some of the redundant workers, about 30 of them have been paid so far since the beginning of this month, but what we are doing is payment from bottom to top. Very soon, others would be paid. Our intention is to disburse at least N50m to the affected workers monthly.”