Emirates picks up Dubai-Lagos flights again after a two-year hiatus

After a two-year hiatus, Emirates Airlines has started operating daily flights between Dubai and Lagos.

On Tuesday, October 1, 2024, the flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates, UAE, began operating flights to Nigeria.

On Tuesday afternoon, the airline’s flight touched down at Lagos’s Murtala Muhammad International Airport (MMIA) as Nigerians commemorated 64 years of freedom from British colonial control.
Approximately eight hours later, at 3:32 pm, air traffic controllers reported that the aircraft had landed at the airport.

In November 2022, Emirates Airlines halted its flights from Dubai to Lagos due to its incapacity to return money that were embargoed in Nigeria during the tumultuous diplomatic relations between the two nations.

Flight restrictions between Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates have long existed due to unsolved concerns involving the Bilateral Air Services Agreement, BASA.

Later, as diplomatic tensions between Nigeria and the UAE—a popular destination for Nigerian visitors and migrants—grew, visa restrictions were revealed.

To iron out the kinks in their diplomatic ties, President Bola Tinubu met with President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates in September 2023 in Abu Dhabi.

Emirates Airlines then announced in May 2024 that it would start operating daily flights from Lagos to Dubai on October 1, 2024.

After two months, the Federal Government of Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates came to an agreement that permits holders of Nigerian passports to apply for visas in order to visit the Arab country.