Leading Nigerian carrier, Air Peace, has received the greenlight to operate direct flights in and out of Dubai following approval by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government.
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, disclosed this on Sunday at the end of the 2023 Dubai Airshow in the UAE, where he also visited the pavilions of leading aviation and aerospace industries to inspect technologies that could be of use in driving his Five Point Agenda for the aviation industry in Nigeria.
Keyamo also revealed that Emirates Airlines, which stopped operations in the country due to its inability to repatriate earnings from Nigeria, also announced its readiness to commence direct flights to Nigeria.
According to a statement by the Head of Press and Public Affairs in the Federal Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Odutayo Oluseyi, the declaration was made by Keyamo after meeting with the top echelon of airline officials in the United Arab Emirates.
“Using the opportunity of the Airshow, the Honourable Minister on the sidelines met with officials of Emirates Airline to further discuss the resumption of flights by the Airline to Nigeria which has yielded positive results as the management has given assurance that the resumption of the flight would commence very soon,’’ the statement said.
It added that Keyamo also met with the management of the Airline Executive, led by its CEO, Dana Hatcic, a company that indicated interest in establishing an MRO facility in Nigeria.
He said the minister expressed the possibility of a maiden edition of the Nigeria Air Show sometime in November 2024, adding that Nigeria will be the first African country to organize such an event.
Keyamo also visited the pavilions of leading aviation and aerospace industries in the world to inspect modern technologies that could be of use in driving his 5- 5-Point agenda for the aviation industry in Nigeria, particularly the improvement of infrastructure and promotion of innovation and creativity in cutting-edge technologies relating to civil aviation.
The Dubai Airshow commenced on 13 November and concluded on 17 November. The event attracted a considerable number of participants from around the world, including leading aviation and aerospace industry specialists.