The United Arab Emirates’ largest airline and flag carrier, Emirates, has announced that “direct flight operation to and from Nigeria is still on hold.”
Flights had been suspended in March over a diplomatic row between Nigeria and the UAE over COVID-19 protocol.
The UAE authorities had initially fixed June 23 for the resumption of flights to Nigeria. But the suspension remains in place.
The airline said in a notice on its website on Friday:
“Affected flight bookings have been cancelled.
“If your flight has been cancelled or impacted by route suspensions due to COVID‑19 restrictions, you don’t need to call us immediately for rebooking. You can simply hold on to your Emirates ticket and when flights resume, get in touch with your booking office or us to make new travel plans.
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“ Get all the information on the ‘Keep your ticket’ option here.
“Emirates regrets any inconvenience caused.
“Customers are requested to ensure their contact details are correct by visiting Manage Your Booking to receive updates.
“If you are calling to find out about travel requirements for your travel, please check the details on the travel requirements page.”
Earlier, Emirates Airline announced that it had extended the suspension of its flights from Nigeria to the United Arab Emirates to November.
The latest extension came after the airline said it would resume flights from Africa’s biggest economy on November 11.
Emirates said in a statement on Wednesday:
“Customers who have been to or connected through Nigeria in the last 14 days will not be permitted on any Emirates flights bound for Dubai.
In the meantime, Nigerians travelling to Dubai have resorted to using other West African airports, a move which puts pressure on their finances as they have to stay in those countries for at least 14 days before flying to UAE.
Emirates suspended the direct flights owing to a disagreement with Nigerian authorities on modalities for COVID-19 testing.
