IATA Reacts To Emirates’ Cancellation Of Flights In And Out Of Nigeria

You can recall that the Dubai-based Emirates Airline flights in and out of Nigeria over its trapped $85 million. The airline announced that it will suspend flights operations in and out of Nigeria from September 1st after failing to repatriate $85 million in ticket revenues from the country. You can read in details via our post HERE.

IATA which is the prime vehicle for inter-airline cooperation in promoting safe, reliable, secure and economical air services – for the benefit of the world’s consumers – has reacted to this decision taken by Emirates airline. Today IATA has about 290 members from 120 nations in every part of the globe.

In a series of tweets, IATA wrote;

IATA is disappointed that the amount of airline money blocked from repatriation by the #Nigerian government grew to $464 million in July. #blockedfunds

IATA’s many warnings that failure to restore timely repatriation will hurt Nigeria with reduced air connectivity are proving true with the withdrawal of @emirates from the market.

Airlines can’t be expected to fly if they can’t realize revenue from ticket sales. Loss of connectivity harms the economy, hurts investor confidence, impacts jobs and people’s lives.

The Government of Nigeria needs to prioritize the release funds before more damage is done.

See Also: Emirates To Reduce Operations In Nigeria Due To ₦60 Billion Trapped Revenue