Posted by By Rotimi Durojaiye, Aviation Correspondent, Lagos on
An agreement between the United Kingdom and the United States has, for now, stalled hopes of direct flights between Lagos and New York though Nigeria has nothing to do with it.
An agreement between the United Kingdom and the United States has, for now, stalled hopes of direct flights between Lagos and New York though Nigeria has nothing to do with it.
But Abuja has withdrawn the approval it granted Continental Airlines (CA) to operate flights between the two cities in retaliation against the ban the United States placed on Virgin Nigeria Airways (VNA) from its airspace.
Travellers had hoped that direct flights by CA and VNA from Lagos and from the Big Apple would cut out the hassle of the current round trip through Europe as well as save on costs.
But there is no way this would happen in the foreseeable future once Virgin Atlantic is involved in the arrangement. The ban is all connected with VNA's partnership with the British-based airline.
The U.S. government made its position known last December through the Economic Counsellor at its Abuja Embassy, Joseph Gregoire, who explained that the opposition to VNA is because its operator, Virgin Atlantic, benefits from restrictions in American/United Kingdom relations - and, therefore, Virgin Atlantic cannot tap into the Open Skies arrangement between Nigeria and America.