The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has announced that Emirates Airline is set to resume flights to Nigeria “shortly” stating that the official start date will be disclosed within the next few days.
Keyamo shared this update on his official X (formerly Twitter) account on Wednesday, following his meeting with the UAE Ambassador to Nigeria, Salem Saeed Al-Shamsi, on Tuesday.
According to the Minister, during this meeting, Ambassador Al-Shamsi handed over a letter from Emirates Airline confirming their imminent flight resumption to Nigeria and the forthcoming announcement of the commencement date.
Nairametrics reported that Keyamo confirmed in a TV interview that Emirates Airlines is expected to resume flights to Nigeria by June 2024.
This follows a deal between President Bola Tinubu and the UAE President during President Tinubu’s October 2023 diplomatic visit to the UAE, which aimed to lift the visa ban on Nigerians and restore flight services between the two nations.
In 2022, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s delay in responding to foreign airlines’ requests to repatriate funds led to several airlines halting flights to Nigeria and stopping the offer of low-priced tickets on Nigerian routes.