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Tuesday, July 30, 2013

► NIGERIA: Med-View Airlines leasing a 747-300 for Hajj/Umrah flights; 767s a possibility.

Nigeria's Kano-based Med-View Airline (VL) has leased an B747-300 (MSN 23032 | TF-AME) from Icelandic ACMI specialists, Air Atlanta Icelandic (CC), with plans to add two B767-300s for use on Hajj and Umrah flights this year.

Med-View/euroAtlantic hybrid
767 in 2009 (WorldAirlineNews)
Regarding the pilgrimages, the Nigerian carrier has also announced plans to position two B767-300s out of Lagos, Abuja, Ilorin, Kano and Maiduguri with outbound flights to Jeddah and Madinah scheduled to leave from between July 23 and 29, with the return inbound flights set for August 6, 2013 on. 

Med-View previously used a combination of a Boeing 747-400 and 767-300ER aircraft leased from one of its technical partners, Portuguese ACMI firm, euroAtlantic Airways (YU), during the 2007-2008 Hajj season but it is uncertain as to whether or not the same 767s will be used again this time round. For local operations, two B737-800s are due by the third quarter of 2013.