An Emirates flight, on Tuesday, October 1, 2024, touched down at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in the Ikeja area of Lagos State, after two years of flight operations’ suspension by the airline.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) flag carrier resumed operations after suspending flights in 2021 due to unresolved issues, including the airline’s trapped funds in Nigeria.

The flight EK 783, Boeing 777-300ER, landed at the old terminal of the Lagos airport at about 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, signifying the resumption of flight operations to Nigeria by the airline.

Emirates Airlines had, in May 2024, announced October 1 as the date to resume flight operations to Nigerian airports.

“We’re back Nigeria! We’ll be resuming services to Lagos from 1 October 2024, and we can’t wait to offer unrivalled connectivity to Dubai and beyond to over 140 cities,” the airline stated in a post on its X (formerly Twitter) account on May 16.

The airline, in a statement on its website, added that it would resume services to Nigeria with a daily service between Lagos and Dubai, and offering customers more choices and connectivity from Lagos to, and through, Dubai.

It said: “The service will be operated using a Boeing 777-300ER. EK783 will depart Dubai at 0945hrs, arriving in Lagos at 1520hrs; the return flight EK784 will leave Lagos at 1730hrs and arrives in Dubai at 0510hrs the next day. Tickets can be booked now on emirates.com or via travel agents.

Emirates Airlines returns to Nigeria, begins Dubai flights Oct 1

“With the resumption of operations to Nigeria, Emirates operates to 19 gateways in Africa with 157 flights per week from Dubai, with further reach to an additional 130 regional points in Africa through its codeshare and interline partnerships with South African Airways, Airlink, Royal Air Maroc, Tunis Air, among others.

“As a major economic hub in Africa, Nigeria and the UAE have built strong bilateral trade relations over the years, headlined by Lagos as the nation’s commercial centre. With the resumption of daily passenger flights, the airline’s cargo arm, Emirates SkyCargo, will further bolster the trade relationship by offering more than 300 tonnes of bellyhold cargo capacity, in and out of Lagos every week.

“Emirates SkyCargo will support Nigerian businesses by exporting their goods via its state-of-the-art hub in Dubai, into key markets such as the UAE, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Bahrain, among others with key anticipated commodities such as Kola Nuts, food and beverages, and urgent courier material.

“Emirates SkyCargo will also import vital goods such as pharmaceuticals and electronics as well as general cargo from key markets such as the UAE, India and Hong Kong. Keeping trade flowing seamlessly, these goods will be transported quickly, efficiently, and reliably via the airline’s multi-vertical specialized product portfolio.

“The Emirates Boeing 777-300ER serving Lagos will operate with 8 First Class suites, 42 Business Class seats, and 304 seats in Economy Class. Offering the best experience in the sky, passengers can dine on regionally inspired multi-course menus developed by a team of award-winning chefs complemented by a wide selection of premium beverages.

“Customers can tune in to over 6,500 channels of global entertainment, including 23 Nigerian movies, in addition to series and other content on ice, Emirates’ award-winning inflight entertainment system.”

The Star