Arik Air

Lagos to JFK Business Class. New A340 the seat was lay flat and fairly spacious. Cabin almost empty while Economy was full. Even so the crew had trouble remembering to bring my food and never got around to headphones. The food they remembered to bring was fair to good. In seat power made up for thin AVOD so one could watch computer movie. Seat controls a bit contrived but functional. Arik was only airline in Lagos to take a credit card even though the purchase process was painful. Check in very confused but that seems to be the Lagos airport staff. Still a better experience than the US airlines international service.

Have flown several times between Lagos domestic (Old terminal) and Warri. Flights on time and flight attendants attentive and friendly. Be warned that you'll have to hunt down your gate at Lagos if you want to be sure of catching your flight. It's not unusual for staff to just wander off for no announcements to be made and for passengers to be running across the runway at the last minute with their baggage in hand. On one occasion a Dutch wetlease service was used from Warri to Lagos older but it was a comfortable plane with one Dutch and one Nigerian FA both friendly and professional. The safety briefing was even done a second time as one passenger point blank refused to pay attention the first time and wouldn't remove their earphones. Food onboard constituted a carton of five alive juice and either a pain au chocolate or the standard Nigerian mystery meat pasty. Good luck with that one. Security at Warri as corrupt as anywhere else in Nigeria. Despite the airport being funded by Shell don't expect any special attention if you work for them though here they are particularly aggressive rather than the usual passive begging.

Heathrow - Lagos and Lagos - Banjul. Very positive experience on every flight - both in economy and business (premier) class. LHR-LOS service excellent new aircraft flat beds in premier class - fares are more reasonable than BA and Virgin Atlantic. The issue is with their booking arrangements - you can make a reservation option online but then have to telephone to confirm and pay for the flight by phoning their London office (in my case). Also a lot of UK travel agents have difficulty booking Arik Air flights.

Flown with them severally especially on the ABV-CBQ ABV-ENU ABV-BNI and occasional ABV-LOS route and there is still a lot to be done with regards to their customer service. Their ticketing and reservations (you can't purchase online unlike VK and AJ) systems leave a lot to be desired. Its usually chaotic at the purchase points and the ground staff are more concerned with barking orders at intending passengers. The inflight service is a continuation of what obtains on ground. Its a real shame for an airline that has such competent pilots and excellent equipment. They have to improve their act because in Nigeria they are becoming a byword for poor customer service and that has started affecting passenger loads. I only fly them because they offer direct flights to my major areas of operation.