Ghana seeks to become best aviation hub in West Africa
A Passion Air inaugural flight to Ho took place December 1, 2021
The airliner operates a domestic flight service
The Ho Airport in the Volta Region of Ghana has received its first inaugural domestic flight.
The development comes after airliner, Passion Air on Wednesday, December 1, 2021, touched down in the Volta Regional capital ahead of its commencement of domestic flight operations from Saturday, December 4, 2021.
Samuel Razak Tachie, Sales and Marketing Manager of Passion Air in an interaction with GhanaWeb on-board the inaugural flight described the feat as a monumental one for commercial activities in that part of the country.
He said, “In the medium to long term, we plan to connect every city in Ghana as long as there is an airport there and we are conducting our inaugural flight to Ho because we believe the city has the potential to boost tourism and investment opportunities.”
“We also want to offer travellers an additional option aside from the regular road travel because we know some people prefer driving regardless while others prefer to fly and, in this day, and age business and time is of the essence,” he added.
Former Managing Director of Ghana Airports Company Limited, Charles Asare, delivering an address at the inaugural ceremony at the Ho Airport described the establishment of the facility as a major boost for business and tourism.
“With the introduction of such commercial flight and domestic operation, I am confident Ghana is poised to becoming the best aviation hub in the ECOWAS sub-region,” he said.
Togbe Adzi Lakle Howusu XII, the Avafiaga of Ho on his part called on the government especially the aviation authorities to establish a flight school and aircraft maintenance centre at the Ho Airport.
This in addition to regular domestic operations, Asare believes, will offer employment, provide knowledge and technical skills for the youth in the region.
“I want to call on the government to establish a flight school and an aircraft maintenance centre at the Ho Airport. This will greatly improve local content within the region’s aviation hub and beyond,” the Chief urged.
Also, the Municipal Chief Executive of Ho, Divine Bosson made a plea to the Ghana Airports Company Limited to offer job opportunities for the teeming youth of Ho in and around the airport.
“Ho is a very attractive and clean city and we believe the establishment of this airport can provide a great opportunity for the youth of Ho who are yearning to feed themselves. We will plead with the Ghana Airport Company Limited that some of the jobs offered to persons from Accra to Ho must be reconsidered and offered to the youth of Ho for them to also earn a living,” the MCE said.
The construction of the Ho airport project which is valued at US$25 million, was completed in 2018.
The facility has a traffic control tower, a runway, a waiting area for over 1,000 passengers, a bus terminal, among others.
Meanwhile, PassionAir is expected to begin commercial flight operations with an Accra-Ho flight with a scheduled departure as well as an Accra-Wa flight.
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
