The Nigerian Government has announced it has lifted restrictions imposed on Emirates airline flights after negotiations were concluded with the airline.
This was disclosed by the Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika on Friday, according to Reuters.
The restrictions were imposed by the FG in March after the airline demanded extra covid-19 testing requirements for Nigerian passengers.
What the Minister is saying
Sirika said, “Today we received communications from Emirates removing some of the conditions for travelling for which we had concerns,”
“Having done that it is necessary to lift the ban on Emirates. This subsequent lifting of ban is a product of lengthy negotiations between us and them.”
Nairametrics reported last month that Emirates Airline, the flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), had earlier extended the resumption date of flights to and from Nigeria till October 10 due to the diplomatic row between Nigeria and the UAE.
They said “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. 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.”
In case you missed it
Nairametrics had reported when Emirates suspended flight operations into Nigeria after the federal government stopped the airline from conducting rapid COVID-19 test for Nigerian travellers at the Lagos and Abuja airports before departure.
Later, the federal government reversed the ban when the airline agreed to stop the rapid antigen tests.
In a twist in March, the federal government reintroduced the ban, explaining that Emirates continued to conduct tests for passengers before departure from Nigeria.
