Festus Keyamo, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, has revealed that Emirates Airline is poised to resume flight operations in Nigeria soon.
Keyamo shared the news on his official X account, stating that he held productive discussions with top officials of the UAE flag carrier during the Dubai Airshow last week.
He emphasized that President Bola Tinubu’s administration is diligently addressing the details for the resumption, and the airline will announce the exact date shortly.
“On the sidelines of the Dubai Airshow in Dubai last week, I met with the top echelon of Emirates Airlines and we continued very warm and fruitful discussions towards the resumption of flights from Dubai to Nigeria, an effort which was championed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Keyamo wrote.
“We are presently working on the small details and the airline will soon announce the exact date of their resumption of the flights.”
The minister also mentioned plans to organize Nigeria’s Airshow in 2024, drawing inspiration from his visit to the pavilions of leading aviation and aerospace industries worldwide at the biennial airshow event.
In October 2022, Emirates Airline cancelled flight operations to Nigeria over its inability to repatriate funds trapped in the country.
The airline suspended operations two times last year, with the first in August 2022.
Emirates Airline said the suspension was due to its $85 million revenue trapped in Nigeria.
After Tinubu visited UAE in September, Ajuri Ngelale, his spokesman, had said the visa ban imposed on Nigerians had been lifted and Emirates alongside Etihad would resume flights to Nigeria.
The UAE authorities later contradicted Ngelale’s claim, a development that subjected the presidency to severe criticisms.
Ada Peter