Nigerian Flight Deck Travel and Business Reportage
JUST when celebrations were rife that Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates ( UAE) have settled their Bilateral Air Services Agreement ( BASA) rift, it has been learnt that all flights to the UAE from Nigeria has been suspended with immediate effect.
This is just as travel agents say they have been instructed not to book any passenger till further notice to the middle eastern country.
According to information making rounds, the nation has received a new COVID-19 protocol from UAE that says from that Nigerians will be expected to do two PCR test before departing Nigeria to UAE.
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The information reads that the first test is to be done 48hours to arrival in Dubai while the second test should be done 6 hours to departure with another antigen test done at transit airport.
This new protocol is to take effect immediately.
Unfortunately, some airlines were already air bourne enroute Dubai and were requested to turned back.
A major player in the travel industry who confirmed this new directive described it as ‘true and very unfortunate’ looking back at the incidents that have transpired in the wake of the diplomatic melee between both nations.
It was learnt that Nigerians are stranded and the Nigeria government is working on getting them back home with any available airline as the airline they travelled with are already almost full and cannot return all of them back.
The UAE and Nigeria settled a 9-month rift over same Covid-19 protocols which later branched out to include flights restrictions by both countries.
