Delta Airlines, the United States’ longest-serving operator in Nigeria, has revealed that it will suspend flight operations between JFK airport, New York, and Lagos from October 4, 2022.
Delta Airlines, which resumed operations on its Lagos-Atlanta route on September 9, 2020, said in a statement that the route suspension was to fit into “the current demand environment.”
It, however, said that the Lagos to Atlanta routes would remain operational.
“Delta is suspending its nonstop service between New York-JFK and Lagos to fit the current demand environment. The airline continues to operate service between Lagos and Atlanta and offers onward connections to New York and other cities across the United States.
“Customers impacted by our suspended New York-JFK to Lagos service will be re-accommodated on Delta-operated flights or services operated by our joint venture partners. Delta remains committed to the Nigeria market,” the airline said.
In that period, the airline proposed to block middle seats till March 2021, as a means of boosting travellers’
REPORTERS AT LARGE earlier reported that the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation Chairman, Rep. Nnolim Nnaji, commended the Federal Government for responding to the appeal and concerns expressed by the House Leadership. The Committee on Aviation released more than half of the trapped foreign airlines’ funds.
Nnaji also frowned at some airlines’ insistence on selling tickets in dollars and asked them to rescind their decision.
He also appealed to the airlines to lower their fares on Nigerian routes, noting that investigations had shown that Nigerian travellers pay higher fares on international routes than any country in Africa.
Nnaji also acknowledged the efforts of the Ministries of Aviation and Finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for their roles in making the release of the funds possible.
