FG bans Emirates Airlines from operating in Nigeria

The Federal Government says Emirates Airlines has been included in the list of airlines not allowed to operate in Nigeria as part of measures to curb the spread of coronavirus in the country.

Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, made this known via his Twitter handle on Friday. He said the decision was taken after a meeting between members of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 and European Union ambassadors. He said the ban would take effect from Monday, September 21, 2020. “The PTF sub-committee met today with EU Ambassadors to discuss Lufthansa, Air France/KLM ban. The meeting progressed well. Emirates Airlines’s situation was reviewed & they are consequently included in the list of those not approved, with effect from Monday the 21st September 2020,” he tweeted.

The PTF sub committee met today with EU Ambassadors to discuss Lufthansa, Air France/KLM ban. The meeting progressed well. Emirates Airlines’s situation was reviewed & they are consequently included in the list of those not approved, with effect from Monday the 21st Sept. 2020🇳🇬

— Hadi Sirika (@hadisirika) September 18, 2020

The Federal Government had on September 5 okayed the resumption of international flights in the country. 

It subsequently released the list of nine airlines granted approval to commence operations. In the statement announcing the international flights restart in the country, Sirika had noted that Air France, KLM, Etihad, RwandAir, Air Namibia, Royal Air Maroc, Lufthansa, TAAG Angola Airlines were denied approval to commence flight operations. He said Cabo Verde and South African airlines were denied approval as international flights were yet to resume in their countries. 

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

The minister, however, did not state the reason for including Emirate Airlines in his tweet.