WARNING: This is from the sun newspaper so it may be Speculation and Fact Free!!!!
When Michael McTighe was contacted last year in the United Kingdom(UK) to come to Nigeria and help set up Arik Air, a host of his colleagues out there tried to discourage him as Nigeria was branded a dangerous and hostile country by the international community.
The sentiment expressed by the international community was understandable because cases of kidnap of expatriates were and are still the order of the day in the Niger Delta region of the country.
But as a man led by his passion, the Scottish aviation consultant did not have too many knotty issues to resolve before accepting the plum job.
He quickly dismissed claims of insecurity in Nigeria with a wave of the hand and flew down to Lagos to do what he likes doing best-setting up an airline.
On arrival, McTighe somehow expected the worst, but he was shocked by the friendliness and warmth exhibited by Nigerians. He was not kidnapped for a ransom, neither was he harassed. The only area he scored below standard was the operating environment and poor infrastructure that characterized the aviation sector.
However, all that did not deter him as the soothing welcome paved way for a quicker, yet happier execution of the project.
More so, amid scathing criticisms from stakeholders in the aviation sector, who queried the rationale behind the sale of the premises of the former national carrier, Nigeria Airways McTighe and his colleagues worked tirelessly to hoist Arik Air�s flag on the nation�s domestic scene.
It took him and his start-up team a couple of months to turn the ghost-like Nigeria Airways building into a magnificent place.
After the set up, he assumed office as the managing director of the airline to oversee the operations of the company.
Today, Arik Air has not only come out to be a fully established company competing favourably with others in its ranks, but is already positioning itself to be the market leader both in Nigeria and the West African region.
The Arik Air boss still believes the country�s aviation industry has room for growth. He has thus thrown his weight behind the various reforms of the Federal Government, which he says portend a brighter future for the sector.
In this interview with Daily Sun, McTighe shares his experience so far in the country, the start up process, challenges and vision.
Excerpts
Background
I�m from Scotland, but I was born in Edinburgh. I started my aviation career with a summer job in Edinburgh Airport. I was meant to be going to the university and I needed some money in the summer mainly for beer and drinking generally and so I got a temporary job in Edinburgh Airport. When I started working in the airport, I loved and enjoyed it. It was like opening a new window in my life and I stayed there. I worked on the ground, I worked on check-in, I went to dispatch and eventually, I went down to England to work for a very large company called Britannia Airways, which subsequently became the largest chartered airline in the world. I climbed to the management ranks there and I ended up in charge of ground operations and assumed responsibility for bringing a quality plan there and revamping the whole structure and set up. I was then asked to do a similar job in cabin services. Now, cabin services in Britannia Airways is a very big department. We had 1,700 cabin crews. So, it was like a department within a department and what I did there was review the way the systems worked, how it was organized and, of course, we save money by being better organized. After that, I was asked to form a big joint venture project and that was starting a new airline in Germany, again for Britannia Airways. And the airline was called Britannia Germany. So, I was part of the project team to set it up and I was asked to become the managing director of the airline once we started flying.
So, I was part of the start up there and as soon as we began flying, I became the managing director. I was there for three and a half years and I then left Britannia, did some consulting, and then I was asked to form a second airline and this was Air Atlanta Europe based in London Gatwick Airport. Air Atlanta specialized in leasing aircraft and crews to airlines that needed them to beef up their capacity. My job there was to set up a team, get the Air Operators Certificate (AOC) and launch a new airline, which I did. I did that job for about two years and then I returned to consultancy. I was consulting with Ryan Air. It�s Europe�s largest low cost airline. I was there for a year as a consultant and then another time off and later I was approached for this job, which entails coming to Nigeria to set up a new airline, Arik Air. I�ve been with the airline from start up to this stage and that�s close to a year now.
What attracted me to the offer?
The attraction for me was the fact that it was the third time I�ve been involved in setting up a new airline. So, I came to Nigeria in mid March 2006. I�m about 11 months here and I�m still here.
Let me also say that I�ve heard stories about Nigeria and if you listen to CNN or read web pages of BBC, it says don�t travel to Nigeria, but I insisted on coming to Nigeria using my own common sense. When I came here, I was shocked by the friendliness and warmth of the people. I could see it was going to be tough job because Arik Air was going to refurbish and revamp some of the assets of the former Nigeria Airways and so you could see a lot of work you needed to do in there.
When I spoke to the chairman and I understood his vision for what he wanted to do, not just for the airline, but to help rebuild the Nigerian aviation industry to be at the standard it should be, that was another attraction to be part of the team. But also, the job I love doing, that is starting up a new airline, leading a team and then forming the team into a cohesive unit is a huge attraction.
Initial hurdles
My initial hurdle was forming a team of people who had aviation experience in Europe and who new the European rules and laws and then coming down to Nigeria with that team to work together as a cohesive unit and make things happen. Another hurdle was also getting ourselves organized down here because people here are used to airlines coming and going and as such people were perhaps not taking us that seriously in the early days. We also spent some time with the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), understanding how they wanted us to set up.
Challenges at the moment
One of the biggest challenges right now, which I even consider as a pressure is the desire of the Nigerian people from all works of life to get a safer and more reliable air transport system. And people have listened to what we said we�ll do in Arik, which we have done because delivering on our promises is very important to us. And we can feel that the people want us to succeed, not on a commercial sense that surpasses our competitors, rather to be at the fore front of the drive to birth of a sound airline. There is this impetus that Nigerians want a safe transport system. Now that we�re flying, we also have the operational day to day pressures of trying to operate within schedule and all of that.
You also know that the weather here is very challenging. We just had the harmattan come through, which happens to be one of the strongest ones for a few years now. That made us delay some flights. So operationally, there are some challenges, but we�re also building up to expand very rapidly in the next six months.
More so, one of the challenges for a new airline is that when you announce your arrival, people get excited and look forward to your launch date. Then, once you�re flying, that becomes a norm, that is the day to day operations, the grind and what we�ve been working hard to do is to ensure we have a solid, secured, firm-based structure that can further develop the airline.
The analogy we used is something like building a house, if you want to build about two or three storey house, you have to have bigger and stronger foundation. That is why we�re spending time getting the foundations right, getting the systems right, getting the people right via good training and all of that because everything we do in Arik is designed for a long term. We want to be here for a very long time. We�re not here for a couple of years, make a fast bucks and get out. No, we�re here. We�re Nigerians and we�re very proud of being that and we want to be here for a very long time.
IATA membership
Our intention is to become a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA). We�ve started that process already and that takes probably six months. We�re in month one or two of that process, so we�ve got four months to go. We also will conduct an IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) on ourselves. The NCAA has written to domestic airlines recommending them to do that and we were the first to write back to say yes!, its our intention to do that because we just believe that is the right way to go. And recently, we�ve had many oil companies approaching us to do an audit on us. Our intention is to welcome them with open arms. We�ve nothing to fear and nothing to hide. We set the airline up on a solid and secured basis. We�ve got European standards, some of those standards are self regulating anyway, so we�ve to order ourselves. We have absolutely nothing to fear from audit. We welcome it.
Partnership with Lufthansa Technik on maintenance
The first contract we initially had with them was for five years. But we intend to probably increase that contract further and further. When we started, we initially had a contract just for line maintenance. Now, we�ve extended that contract and they�re going to do some quality work for us. They�ve helped us build our emergency plan. We�ve also contracted them to inspect the new aircraft that we bring in. How that works is, when they inspect the aircraft we want to bring in either from Canada or the United States, they will record all the component details on that airplane and put them in their computer. So, it means that when the mechanics come to work on that airplane in Lagos, they�ll find the complete data of the aircraft and that�ll enable them do the full services to the airplane. And we believe that our relationship with Lufthansa is very strong. What we think is a very long term relationship. We want to do that for more than five years.
Regional/international operations
Our plans are to start international operations in summer of 2007. What we�re looking at right now is that we�re securing wide-bodied aircraft for our service to London. We have the traffic rights to go to London, we�ve got the rights to Heathrow. We�re part of the bilateral agreement negotiations between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the British Government. We were allocated seven slots to Heathrow. We want to start those services between June/July of this year. And we�re also looking at direct flights between Houston and Lagos as well. But the issue we�ve there is that there�s absolute shortage of wide-bodied aircraft in the world at the moment. It�s very difficult to get that and the market rates have risen significantly. Perhaps the reason is that the long-awaited Airbus A380 is delayed. So, airlines that will be swapping other aircraft for the A380�s so that they can come into market are just not there. Also in Boeing, the B787 Dreamliner is running behind schedule as well. So, they�ve got all overbooked and it�s just very very difficult to get quality wide-bodied aircraft at this moment in time. Now, the Lagos-Houston route is a very long route and not many aircraft have the range. So, while we may use an Airbus A330 to go to London, that same aircraft will have to stop in Dakar to go to Houston. And ideally, we want to go direct because our market research tells us that Nigerians want to go direct, Houston to Lagos, period. They don�t want to go via anywhere else, otherwise, we may just go through London or Frankfurt to the United States as it�s done today. So, we want point to point. So, what we�re looking for is the right aircraft. We�re looking at either an Airbus A340 or a Boeing 777. We�re also talking to a number of American airlines as well, may be we just codeshare or have a partnership arrangement with them such that they look after us in the United States and we look after them in Nigeria.
New domestic routes
Domestically, we�re currently flying Lagos-Abuja, Lagos-Benin, Lagos-Enugu, Lagos-Port Harcourt, Lagos-Calabar and Calabar-Abuja. Next to be launched will be Port Harcourt-Abuja, Abuja-Sokoto, Kano, Jos, Maiduguri and Yola.
As our new aircraft come over the next month, we�ll add all those northern points to our destinations. We�ve paid our respects to Sultan of Sokoto to show him our plans and he has very kindly welcomed our plans and as soon as we�ve an aircraft available, we�ll add Lagos-Abuja-Sokoto.
Competition
Competition is good because the customers are better off for it. It brings about the best in companies. So, for us to stay ahead of domestic competitors, wherever possible, we�ll use brand new aircraft. We believe that that gives us significant advantage on technical cost, reliability and onboard service. What we�re getting is regular comments and praises on the quality of our onboard cabin crew and service. Yes! People love the brand new aircraft. That�s fine, that�s great but we want to be consistent and deliver what we say we�re going to deliver. And I think, those two effects coupled with the fact that we�re Nigerians, that �ll give us a competitive edge. Our objective, for instance, is when you step on board our airplane in Heathrow, you should feel like you�re coming home. From the sights to the sounds to the smells, you know you�re at home. We teased our chairman that we will serve real Nigerian pepper soup on our airplane. So, when you step into our airplane, we want you to smell the pepper soup, we want you to be greeted by a beautiful boy or girl in traditional dress. The concept is to make you feel you�re stepping home from overseas.
Checking dearth of professionals
At the moment, we�ve got 15 pilots under training at the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Zaria and we�re on the verge of sponsoring first 10 initial engineers in Zaria as well. We�ll do these every year because at the moment, there is a real shortage of young talents in the industry. When we did our major recruiting early last year, we found out that between the ages of 20 and 40, there is a real shortage of trained Nigerian pilots. There are lots of them with potentialities, but no one has received the training. No one had invested in training young Nigerians. What we�ve had to do is hire local engineers and pilots. We�ve also have to supplement them with expatriates. What we want to do is we�re looking ahead into the future with these first 25 people that we�ve called. They won�t be back to Arik for a couple of years because they�ll finish their initial training in Zaria as young pilots who�ve registered a few hundred hours, we�ll then look for one or two regional airlines with very good safety standards, good Standard Operating Procedures (SOP�s), so that the pilots can work there as a two-man team for a couple of years. So, when they get the right experience, we can bring them back into Arik onto the smaller aircraft, put them on the right hand seat as first officers and through time, progress them to the command.
So, what we�re looking for is a long term plan that each of those people that we sponsor, if they�re dedicated and they work hard and pass all their exams, one day they�ll be captains on board an Arik aircraft.
Let me say that at the moment, we already have two complete crews on the CRJ 900. That is, we�ve got two Nigerian captains and two Nigerian first officers. We�ve got another two under training and we�ve got another four about to start training. On the 737-300 fleet, we�ve got three crews. We�ve got six guys that I call blacks because they�re five Nigerians and one Ghanaian.
Number of aircraft
At the moment, we�ve got two Hawker Executive Jets, three CRJ 900 and the fourth one will come in two weeks. We�ve leased three CRJ-200�s, they�ll be here in three weeks. We�ve two B737-300�s and we�ve another two B737�s we�re expecting in June for domestic and West Coast operations.
Talking of our West Coast operations, we�ve already started work on that and I don�t want to give you an exact date yet. And we�re looking at the usual suspects like Accra, Malabo and Doualla and perhaps Libreville as well.
Marketing strategy
We�ve focused heavily on selling the Arik brand. That is why we keep saying it is a new experience. What that means is that we�re bringing new aircraft, new technology, new on board service and our consistency in the market place. We�ve also done some brand advertising, using newspaper and radio stuff as well. Also we�re using word of mouth and TV interviews, so that in a way, we�re quietly coming into the market and we�ve quietly told people what we�re doing. We�re letting the Nigerian public to test us to decide whether they want to fly with us or not. Our load factors tell us Nigerians love what we�re doing. We�re under pressure at the moment to open up new routes because people want to fly Arik.
Management style
I love team work. I�m a very focused person and I try as much as possible to achieve set targets. When you set goals, they propel you to work very hard. The same thing happens when a team has set objectives. They work hard to meet their goals. I also love to reward hard work and dedication. It motivates the workforce.
Recapitalization
We�re fully capitalized at the moment. We�re the most capitalized airline in Nigeria and we�ll up our capitalization to meet international standards. In fact, we�ll double the international standards.
Mergers
In terms of mergers, what we�ve decided as a board is if someone approached us for that, what we�ll do is to have a critical look at the proposal. We�ll look at it from a business view point, from both parties� sides. We�re not saying no, we�ll never merge, but what we�re saying is that if an opportunity came up, we�ll look at it from a business point of view and ask what the marriage will bring for us and for the other party? If it�s right for both parties, we�ll give it a serious consideration.
Assessment of the nation�s aviation industry
Holistically, at the moment, I�ll say the aviation business in Nigeria is getting better. It�s really getting better. If I looked back at what I saw a year ago when I first came in here, I�ll say it was quite poor. I�ll say it�s getting better. I�ll say the policies and procedures that were put in place by the President, the former and new aviation ministers over time will bear fruit. I think Nigeria is on the right track.
Anxiety
Anxiety is always there for the CEO of an airline. You have tremendous highs and tremendous lows when you launch a new route for instance or if you introduced a new aircraft. I remember the huge excitement when the first CRJs arrived Nigeria. I had seen them several times in Montreal. It was tremendously emotional. Most people had tears in their eyes to be honest.
And there are times you have losses because things didn�t go right. Maybe you had a technical fault or maybe you cancelled a flight. We had a bird strike once and all that. So, you feel bad when you have to disappoint people. That�s a low point. There are high points as well. I get calls from operations that tell me the last airplane has landed. So, until I ascertain that the airplanes are safe, likewise the crews before I can think of going to bed.
Vision
I want Arik to become the largest Nigerian airline. We want to cover all the areas and airports in Nigeria. We want to have successful West Coast operations that feed our international traffic. We want to have an international programme that goes to all continents of the world. We want to put the pride back into Nigeria. We want to be a truly Nigerian carrier that earns the respect of the world. That is to say a Nigerian airline that is welcomed in all parts of the world due to robust safety record and quality standards are international.
Retirement
All I can do is do consultancy or something when I�m old, which means I�ll still be attached to the aviation industry. It�s one area I love very much. My heart and blood is in aviation.