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Tag: Emirates Airlines

  • No to the return of Emirates Airlines to Nigeria – By Osita Chidoka

    No to the return of Emirates Airlines to Nigeria – By Osita Chidoka

    The gleeful announcement of the return of Emirates Airline to Nigeria by the Hon. Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, on X is a sad reminder of the deepening lack of national pride and the growing irrelevance of Nigeria in the World.

    The audacity of Emirates Airlines to even consider returning to Nigeria reeks of contempt and disdain towards our nation. The actions of the government of UAE and their airline, Emirates, from the unwarranted visa ban on all Nigerians to the suspension of flights, have been nothing short of a blatant attack on the dignity of Nigerians.

    During my time as Aviation Minister, Emirates Airlines enjoyed an unprecedented two slots to Lagos and one slot to Abuja granted by my predecessor and sustained over the years. This gesture showed Nigeria’s desire to forge close relationships and build regional alliances in the Gulf.

    Yet, when Nigeria faced economic challenges, Emirates shamelessly abandoned us while other airlines stood by us. Emirates Airlines, arguably the wealthiest airline in the world, was the only airline that suspended operations.

    All the African and European Airlines, equally owed by the Nigerian government, continued operating and weathered the storm with us as a people—a remarkable show of solidarity and a vote of confidence on a market they had enjoyed for decades.

    Emirates Airlines, like UAE’s Mubadala, the major investor in Etisalat Nigeria, fled at the first sign of trouble, leaving Nigerians stranded and insulted by their mean behaviour. They did not just walk away. The UAE government imposed an egregious visa ban on all Nigerians.

    The imposition of a visa ban on all Nigerians is an unwarranted and vile display of aggression and dehumanisation of Nigerians.

    Nigerians must say no to the unjustified stigmatisation and degradation of Nigerians, almost akin to the ghettos of 20th-century Europe. A national visa ban suggests a desire to humiliate and cast a slur on a people as a group.

    The behaviour of the UAE government and their Airline is an unprovoked attack, and Nigeria should insist on a wholesome redress. As we speak, there is no word yet on the visa ban and no apology to Nigerians.

    The Nigerian government must not allow Emirates Airlines to waltz back into our skies without being held accountable for their disrespectful and demeaning conduct. We demand a thorough investigation and restitution before even considering their return.

    Respect for our nation and people is non-negotiable and an irreducible minimum. We will not allow our pride to be trampled upon by arrogant corporations or foreign governments.

    This administration must reaffirm our priceless sovereignty at all times. Our sovereignty is not for sale.

    Osita Chidoka is a former Minister of Aviation of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

  • Emirates Airlines sets date to resume operations in Nigeria

    Emirates Airlines sets date to resume operations in Nigeria

    Emirates Airlines has announced to resume operations to Nigeria from October 1, 2024 between Lagos and Dubai.

    In a statement on Thursday, the airline, with its hub in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), said flight services will be operated using a Boeing 777-300ER.

    Emirates’ Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, Adnan Kazim, said, “We are excited to resume our services to Nigeria. 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.”

    Emirates Airlines had suspended its Dubai-Lagos flights in 2022 over its inability to repatriate trapped funds in Nigeria in the heat of the diplomatic row between the two countries.

    Nigeria and the UAE have a long history of restriction of flights between both countries based on certain unresolved issues surrounding the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA). Visa restrictions later surfaced as diplomatic fireworks continue between Nigeria and the UAE, which is a top destination for Nigerian migrants and tourists.

    In September 2023, President Bola Tinubu met with UAE President, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in Abu Dhabi, to smoothen the rough edges in the diplomatic relations between the two countries.

    Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, recently said Emirates Airlines has indicated a definite date to resume flight operations to Nigerian airports.

    However, the UAE has not officially announced its latest decision on visa ban imposed on Nigerian travellers.

  • BREAKING: Again, Emirates Airlines suspends flight operations to Nigeria

    BREAKING: Again, Emirates Airlines suspends flight operations to Nigeria

    Emirates Airlines says it has suspended flight operations to Nigeria, effective October 29 2022.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Emirates Airlines as saying this is a result of its inability to repatriate funds trapped in the country.

    This is the second time the airline will be suspending flights to the West African country over its $85 million revenue.

    The airline said it has communicated its position to the Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

    Emirates had in August suspended flights to Nigeria over its $85 million repatriated revenue.

    In August, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said foreign airlines have not been unable to repatriate $464 million from Nigeria.

  • Emirates Airlines: Airline chief laments, asks CBN to release blocked funds

    Emirates Airlines: Airline chief laments, asks CBN to release blocked funds

    Chief Executive Officer of an aviation company, Mr Segun Adewale has urged the Federal Government to expeditiously repatriate the 600 million dollars ticket revenue belonging to foreign airlines operating in the country.

    Adewale, also former Vice-Chairman, National Association of Nigerian Travel Agencies (NANTA) gave the charge in a statement he issued on Saturday in Ikeja.

    One of the airlines, Emirates Airlines on Thursday announced the suspension of its flight operations in Nigeria from Sept. 1, over its inability to repatriate its funds from the country.

    International carriers operating in Nigeria have repeatedly complained about their inability to repatriate funds to their home countries.

    Blocked funds belonging to these airlines have risen to about 600 million dollars as the CBN had not been able to make the dollar available for the carriers to repatriate.

    Adewale stated that revenue from ticket sales which accumulated since 2021 till July 2022 was blocked by the CBN from being repatriated to airline operators through the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

    “The repatriation of revenues of all tickets sold to travellers by airline operators to their home offices is the responsibility of the CBN, but it has refused to release the equivalent in dollars for service already rendered.

    “We have lost so many airlines and jobs are being lost in the aviation sector and at airports generally.

    “The development is inimical to our economic wellbeing as a nation; from the spiritual angle of thought, it is wrong to muzzle the ox that threads the corn,’’ Adewale stated.

    The airline chief decried that the blocked funds had already led to reduction of air connectivity and restriction of flights.

    He stated that it was disheartening that the same FOREX being denied the airlines was being released to import non-essential products such as champagne and tooth picks.

    “If foreign airlines suspend flight operations, businesses will be shifted to neighbouring countries like Ghana and Benin Republic.

    “The issue is so difficult for the operators, who now borrow FOREX from their home offices to fuel their airplanes.

    “With the increase in dollar rate leading to rise in flight ticket prices, especially en-route America and Dubai, which is now over a million naira, the environment is getting hostile for businesses to thrive,’’ he stated.

    Adewale appealed to the Ministers of Aviation, Finance and the CBN to do the needful and ensure release of FOREX.

  • Emirates Airlines ready to partner with Nigeria to establish national carrier

    Emirates Airlines ready to partner with Nigeria to establish national carrier

    Emirates Airlines has made an offer to partner with Nigeria in its quest to establish a national carrier.

    Mr James Odaudu, Special Assistant to Sen. Hadi Sirika, Minister of Aviation, stated in Abuja on Monday that the President of Emirates Airlines, Mr Tim Clark made the offer during a panel discussion at Dubai Expo 2020.

    The panel discussion was held to discuss the future of aviation at the Dubai Expo 2020.

    Clark said Emirates Airlines would be happy to help if assistance was requested of it in starting Nigeria’s national carrier.

    He added that such assistance would elicit requests for clarification, mostly from the media and industry stakeholders in Nigeria.

    Clark spoke in support of Sirika’s position that Nigeria had a compelling need to establish a national carrier, going by certain indices.

    “Of course, Nigeria needs a national airline. There is an enormous business case for the national carrier. Nigerians are seeking to travel all over the world. Nigeria is a powerhouse in Africa.

    “We are very interested in flying there because it is a rich nation in terms of demand for services,’’ Clark said.

    Sirika said at the session that the offer by Emirates Airlines could not be anything other than an endorsement of the need, the zeal, and the process for the national carrier project.

    He said Emirates Airlines’ move was also an expression of confidence of the international aviation community in the commitment by Nigeria to own its own airline.

    He said the offer was an encouragement to the many bidders currently preparing their Public-Private Partnership bids for Nigeria Air in response to the Request for Proposal advertised by Nigeria.

    Sirika assured that the process for the acquisition of the Air Operator’s Certificate and the Air Transport License was well on course for the expected launch date of the national carrier that Nigerians would be proud of.

    “As has been repeatedly stated, the whole process for the establishment of the national carrier and all the projects under the government’s aviation roadmap has been guided by the principles of transparency and accountability.

    “Boldly speaking, this will remain till the final delivery of the project,’’ the minister said.

    Expo 2020 was a World Expo hosted by Dubai from Oct.1, 2021, to March 31, 2022.

    It was originally scheduled for Oct. 20, 2020, to April 10, 2021. The organisers kept the name Expo 2020 for marketing and branding purposes in spite of its postponement because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • NCAA withdraws frequency approval for Emirates Airlines, gives reasons

    NCAA withdraws frequency approval for Emirates Airlines, gives reasons

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has explained why it withdrew the ministerial approval granted to Emirates Airlines by the Ministry of Aviation.

    Director-General of the NCAA, Musa Shuaibu Nuhu, in a statement on Friday said that it withdrew the approval following the refusal of the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) to grant equal rights to the sole Nigerian carrier, Air Peace flying to Dubai via Sharjah.

    An airline frequency refers to how many services an airline may provide within a set period, usually on shorter routes between two large urban destinations.

    Nuhu explained that the aviation minister, Sen. Hadi Sirika had granted Emirates Airlines 21 frequencies weekly to two major airports in Nigeria; Lagos, 14 and Abuja, seven.

    He, however, explained that despite the approval, the GCAA refused to grant Air Peace three weekly frequencies to Sharjah, which the airline requested for, but rather approved just one frequency weekly.

    According to him, the GCAA had attributed its refusal to grant the three frequencies to the airline to inadequate slots in the Sharjah airport, stressing that the government would continue to protect Nigeria’s businesses.

    The withdrawal is expected to take effect from December 12, allowing Emirates Airlines to fly into Abuja just once weekly on Thursdays, while its Lagos flight has been suspended.

  • FG lifts ban on Emirates Airlines

    FG lifts ban on Emirates Airlines

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has notified the public of the immediate lifting of the suspension placed on Emirates Airlines operations in Nigeria.

    Capt. Musa Nuhu, the Director-General of NCAA made this known in a statement issued in Lagos on Friday.

    Earlier, the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 had directed for the immediate suspension of Emirates Airlines operations effective Feb. 4 until when the needed infrastructure and logistics were put in place for the Rapid Antigen Test (RDT) test by the Nigerian Government.

    Nuhu recalled that the PTF was made aware of the requirements by Emirates airlines and KLM for passengers traveling from Nigeria on their flights to Dubai and Amsterdam.

    The director-general said that they were to undergo an RDT four hours from the time of flight departure.

    She said: “This requirement is in addition to the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test done 72 hours from the date of departure by passengers.

    “The implementation of the additional requirement by the two airlines was commenced without the prior notification or approval of the PTF and other regulatory bodies in the country.

    “This led to the provision of RDT testing by organisations and laboratories that have not been approved by the PTF and other regulatory agencies for RDT at or around our international airports in Lagos and Abuja.

    “The PTF upon review of the situation directed the NCAA to inform the airlines to either suspend the requirement for pre-departure RDT or their flights to the country.

    “Until such a time when the required infrastructure and logistics have been put in place for RDT by the government.

    However, Emirates Airlines continued their operations requiring passengers to carry out the RDT test six hours from the time-of-flight departure from the country.

    Nuhu said Emirates Airlines on Feb. 5 informed the NCAA in writing that the UAE government had given the airline approval to suspend the pre-departure RDT requirement for passengers traveling on their flight to Dubai.

    “Consequent upon the foregoing, the PTF directed the NCAA to lift the suspension placed on Emirates Airlines flights into Nigeria with effective from Feb. 5.

    “The public is hereby informed as follows: Emirates Airlines no longer requires passengers to carry out pre-departure RDT.

    “No laboratory has been approved by the PTF and other regulatory agencies to carry out RDT for incoming or departing passengers,” he said.

    Nuhu said that the PTF would inform all Nigerians of any changes to the above.

  • FG includes Emirates on list of barred airlines in Nigeria

    FG includes Emirates on list of barred airlines in Nigeria

    The Federal Government has barred Emirates Airlines from operating in Nigeria.

    According to the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, the ban will take effect from Monday, September 21, 2020.

    The tweet read: “The PTF sub-committee met today with EU Ambassadors to discuss Lufthansa, Air France/KLM ban. The meeting progressed well. Emirates Airlines’ situation was reviewed and they are consequently included in the list of those not approved, with effect from Monday, September 21, 2020.”

    The Federal Government had last month vowed to enforce the principle of reciprocity in granting permission to airlines to resume operations.

    Before the resumption of international flights in the country, the Federal Government had announced that Air France, KLM, Etihad, RwandAir, Air Namibia, Royal Air Maroc, Lufthansa, TAAG Angola Airlines were not granted approval to commence flight operations.

    Cabo Verde and South African airlines were also denied approval as international flights had yet to resume in their countries.

    Middle East Airline, British Airways, Delta, Qatar, Ethiopian Airlines, Emirates Airlines, Air Peace, Virgin Atlantic, Asky Airlines, Africa World Airways, Air Cote D’ Ivoire, Kenya Airways, EgyptAir, Turkish Airlines were all granted approval to resume operations in Nigeria.

    EgyptAir, Virgin Atlantic, Turkish Airlines, Africa World Airways, Kenya Airways, and Middle East Airlines were announced as the airlines permitted to use Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, while British Airways, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Africa World Airways, and Middle East Airlines were granted approval to use Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

  • Electronics restriction: US lifts ban on two airlines

    Electronics restriction: US lifts ban on two airlines

    The United States has lifted the in-cabin ban on laptops and other large electronic devices on US-bound flights from Dubai and Istanbul, Emirates and Turkish Airlines said on Wednesday.

    The announcements come three days after restrictions were lifted on Etihad Airways’ hub Abu Dhabi International Airport.

    The ban was lifted “effective immediately” on Dubai International, the world’s busiest airport for international travel, after new security measures announced by the US last week were implemented, an Emirates spokeswoman said in a statement.

    Emirates, the Middle East’s largest airline and which flies to 12 US cities, had blamed travel restrictions imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration for a drop in demand on US flights.

    The Dubai-based carrier cut flights to five US cities from May, though has since said demand was starting to return on some routes.

    Meanwhile, Turkish Airlines said in a statement that passengers travelling to the United States could now take their laptops onboard.

    In March, the United States imposed the ban on flights originating at 10 airports in eight countries – Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Turkey – to address fears that bombs could be concealed in electronic devices taken aboard aircraft.

    The United States announced on June 29 enhanced security measures for flights to the country which require additional time to screen passengers and personal electronic devices for possible explosives.

    The new measures, which take effect within three weeks of the announcement, will affect around 325,000 daily passengers travelling on 180 airlines from 280 airports around the world, according to the US Department of Homeland Security.

    Airlines that fail to meet the new security requirements could still face in-cabin electronics restrictions.

     

  • Qatar Airways hit by airspace ban as Gulf diplomatic row intensifies

    Qatar Airways hit by airspace ban as Gulf diplomatic row intensifies

    Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have cut military and diplomatic ties with Qatar, alleging the country has been supporting extremist groups.

    Airlines including Emirates and Etihad have been told to stop flying to Qatar.

    Emirates announced: “As instructed by the UAE government, Emirates will suspend its flights to and from Doha, starting from the morning of 6 June 2017, until further notice.

    “All customers booked on Emirates’ flights to and from Doha will be provided with alternative options, including full refunds on unused tickets and rebooking to alternate Emirates destinations.”

    Fare-comparison website, Skyscanner, is listing complex and expensive one- and two-stop connections between Doha and Dubai, rather than the usual 70-minute hop.

    At 3.34am local time, Emirates flight 848 departed from Doha to Dubai – the last link between these two Middle Eastern hubs until a furious diplomatic row ends.

    On a normal day there are almost 20 flights each way between the Qatari airport and Dubai, making it the busiest route in the region. But from 4am today, they are all grounded – along with dozens of other departures and tens of thousands of passengers.

    Saudi Arabia’s closure of airspace to Qatar Airways planes seriously affects the airline’s connections with Africa. The overnight arrival from Johannesburg, QR1368, was routed via Oman and Iran to avoid Saudi airspace.

    While as signatories to the 1945 International Air Services Transit Agreement, Bahrain, Egypt and the UAE are obliged to allow overflights, the evidence from flight paths monitored by The Independent shows that Qatar Airways is avoiding their airspace.

    The world’s longest flight, from Doha to Auckland, became even longer with a lengthy diversion over Iran.

    Early arrivals at Doha on Tuesday morning displayed on FlightRadar24 showed a range of sub-optimal routings. The arrivals from Adelaide, Melbourne and Perth took a northern course over Pakistan and Iran rather than the direct track across the UAE. They all approached Doha from the north, arriving late in Doha.

    Qatar Airways flight 1149 from Muscat in Oman took an extremely circuitous route to avoid UAE airspace, initially heading east, away from Doha, before turning north-west to Iran.

    Qatar Airways flies from Heathrow, Birmingham, Manchester and Edinburgh to Doha. These routes are unlikely to be affected, with aircraft using Turkish and Iranian airspace. But the vast majority of passengers transferring to onward flights. With aircraft flying circuitous routes and picking up delays en route, the potential for disruption of the complex “hub and spoke” operation is significant.

    The Independent has asked Qatar Airways how British passengers are likely to be affected, but has not yet had a response.

    Air Transport World reported that Qatar Airways’ CEO, Akbar al-Baker, abandoned an airline chiefs’ event, the IATA annual general meeting, to return to Doha. He is reported to have flown back on Monday on a private jet.

    It is unclear what the effect will be on other airlines’ flights. Qatar Airways is the biggest shareholder in British Airways’ parent company, IAG, with one-fifth of the equity. BA flight 123 from Heathrow to Doha arrived on time, after flying over Turkey and Iran.

    A reciprocal ban by Qatar on aircraft from the countries which have imposed the restrictions will not have a significant effect on operations.

     

    The Independent