Emirates, the UAE-based airline, has announced the resumption of its flight services to Nigeria starting from October 1, 2024. The airline will operate a daily service between Lagos and Dubai.
Emirates had previously suspended its flight operations to Nigeria in October 2022 due to difficulties in repatriating funds trapped in the country. However, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has since confirmed that the funds belonging to the airline and others have been settled.
Festus Keyamo, Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation, had hinted a few days ago that the UAE carrier would soon resume its flight operations to Nigeria. This was confirmed by Emirates Airlines in a statement on its website on Thursday.
The airline stated that the service to Nigeria would be operated using a Boeing 777-300ER. The flight is scheduled to depart Dubai at 0945hrs, arriving in Lagos at 1520hrs. The return flight, EK784, will leave Lagos at 1730hrs and arrive in Dubai at 0510hrs the next day.
Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, expressed his excitement about resuming services to Nigeria. He said, “The Lagos-Dubai service has traditionally been popular with customers in Nigeria, and we hope to reconnect leisure and business travellers to Dubai and onwards to our network of over 140 destinations. We thank the Nigerian government for their partnership and support in re-establishing this route and we look forward to welcoming passengers back onboard.”
With Nigeria being a major economic hub in Africa, the country and the UAE have built strong bilateral trade relations over the years. The resumption of daily passenger flights will further strengthen this relationship, with Emirates SkyCargo offering more than 300 tonnes of bellyhold cargo capacity in and out of Lagos every week.
Emirates SkyCargo will support Nigerian businesses by exporting their goods via its state-of-the-art hub in Dubai to key markets such as the UAE, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Bahrain. Anticipated commodities include Kola Nuts, food and beverages, and urgent courier material.
Emirates SkyCargo will also import essential goods such as pharmaceuticals and electronics, as well as general cargo from key markets such as the UAE, India, and Hong Kong. These goods will be transported quickly, efficiently, and reliably via the airline’s multi-vertical specialized product portfolio.
