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Emirates Airlines have decided to suspend flights into Nigeria over its inability to repatriate its ticket sales funds back to its home country in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The airline said in a statement on Thursday morning, that all flights from Nigeria will be suspended effective from the 1st of September, 2022.
According to the Daily Post, over 20 foreign airlines have $600 million in funds trapped in Nigeria since the start of the year.
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The Emirates claims that about $85 million of the trapped funds belong to them.
Before its announcement, the airline reduced flights into the Lagos Airport from 11 weekly frequencies to 7 on Monday.
The airline also notified that all efforts to get back these funds have been abortive and will hence stop its flights into Nigeria to reduce further loss.
The airline’s statement on Thursday said: ”Emirates has tried every avenue to address our ongoing challenges in repatriating funds from Nigeria, and we have made considerable efforts to initiate dialogue with the relevant authorities for their urgent intervention to help find a viable solution.”
”Regrettably, there has been no progress. Therefore, Emirates has taken the difficult decision to suspend all flights to and from Nigeria, effective September 1, 2022, to limit further losses and impact on our operational costs that continue to accumulate in the market.”
”We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to our customers, however, the circumstances are beyond our control at this stage. We will be working to help impacted customers make alternative travel arrangements wherever possible.”
”Should there be any positive developments in the coming days regarding Emirates’ blocked funds in Nigeria, we will of course re-evaluate our decision. We remain keen to serve Nigeria, and our operations provide much-needed connectivity for Nigerian travellers, providing access to trade and tourism opportunities to Dubai and to our broader network of over 130 destinations.”
Source: Daily Post