ACS were asked by a ship management company to facilitate a crew rotation from India to the Togolese Republic in July 2020. With Togo closed to all commercial flights due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the client’s only option was to charter but they needed to offset some of the cost.
Maritime crew change, Togolese Republic
ACS were asked by a ship management company to facilitate a crew rotation from India to the Togolese Republic in July 2020. With Togo closed to all commercial flights due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the client’s only option was to charter but they needed to offset some of the cost.
OUR SOLUTION
Route: Mumbai > Lomé
Aircraft: Airbus A320neo
We advised chartering a large aircraft, which would allow the client to offset some of the cost by sharing its capacity with other maritime companies in the same predicament. We sourced an Airbus A320neo with a large enough capacity to hold the 131 passengers on the outbound charter. The new aircraft also had fantastic range and unrivalled fuel efficiency, further helping to keep costs down.
Knowing how difficult it is to obtain permits for both India and Togo (especially when chartering an aircraft not registered in either country), we worked closely with the client and their appointed agents to secure all necessary permissions. These included special exemptions allowing the passengers and crew to enter Togo whilst it was closed to commercial flights. Additionally, despite the aircraft’s fuel efficiency, two fuel stops and a crew change were needed on each leg of the charter. Mindful that many countries wouldn’t allow this during the pandemic, our team liaised with the operator to schedule these in the Seychelles and Nairobi.
THE FINER DETAILS
Global Network: Our offices in Hong Kong, Johannesburg and Mumbai worked together throughout this complex project – from calling embassies, ministries and government personnel to working with the aircraft operator to secure slots and finalise schedules. Involving three offices in different time zones allowed us to offer the client a seamless, round-the-clock service.
Proactive Team: We secured this business after contacting the client’s CEO to see whether we could assist with their crew personnel logistics.