By Eliuzabeth ADENUGA
The Nigerian ground handling firm, Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) Plc, has enhanced its operations with the acquisition of over N1 billion modern ground handling equipment.
The company unveiled the equipment on Thursday at its Engineering and Maintenance Workshop in the Air Force Base at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos.
Mr Basil Agboarumi, the Managing Director of SAHCO, said with the acquisition and use of the equipment, the company had further cemented its position as the leading company in ground handling in West and Central African Regions.
Agboarumi said apart from the machines unveiled, some other equipment were currently at Onne Port in Port Harcourt awaiting final clearance.
According to him, some of the equipment inaugurated by SAHCO include Ground Power Units (GPU), Load Banks, Tow Bars, Tyre Removal Machines and 10 new engines for ground operations.
Agboarumi said SAHCO was already changing the face of aviation ground handling services in Nigeria with its latest acquisition.
He said that the company would consistently offer its clients the best of services anywhere in the country.
Agboarumi said that with the regularly upgrade and investment on equipment, SAHCO would be a force to reckon with in global aviation industry.
“As a Ground Handling company, we want to ensure that we do ground handling to the highest industry standards.
“We understand we need to deploy equipment that will make our clients happy and we also know that we have to partner with our clients.
“Apart from these that are commissioned today, some of our other equipment are still coming to Lagos from Port Harcourt.
“They are presently awaiting clearance from the port. SAHCO is moving toward making the right impacts in the industry.
”We always want to operate safe and efficient ground handling operations for our clients,” he said.
Also, Mr Toyin Oriowo, the Assistant General Manager, Maintenance and Engineering, SAHCO, said that the equipment acquired were some of the major machines in the global aviation industry.
Oriowo said the equipment came with safety devices that prevent damages to the machines or aircraft, stressing that the GPU had a capacity of 140KVA, while a major aircraft highest capacity was 90KVA.
“What we are inaugurating today is the latest technology in town with lots of safety devices to prevent damages to either the equipment or the aircraft.
“The tow bars can handle Airbus A320, Boeing 737, A330, A340-200/300, A350, B767, B777, B787 and IL96.
Others are DC10/MD 11, L10 11, A340-500/600 and B747,” he said.
According to him, the equipment, which were manufactured in France, came with training for its technical personnel.
SAHCO, which recently enlisted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), is an aviation ground handling company involved in passenger handling, ramp handling, cargo services and warehousing, aviation security services.
It also provides ground support maintenance services, crew bus and executive lounge services and other related ground handling services.
