Nigeria’s Air Peace, Air Senegal to enter Southern Africa

Nigeria’s Air Peace (P4, Lagos) and Air Sénégal (HC, Dakar Blaise Diagne Int’l) plan to launch flights to Johannesburg O.R. Tambo before the end of 2020. According to the ch-aviation schedules module, Air Senegal on November 5, 2020, launches a weekly service from Dakar Blaise Diagne Int’l to Johannesburg, with stops in Bamako, Mali, and Libreville, Gabon. Southbound flights leave on Thursday and return the next day. Meanwhile, Air Peace has announced plans for three weekly services between Lagos and Johannesburg before year-end. This would be its first return to South Africa since it repatriated 503 Nigerians from that country following incidences of xenophobia in 2019. Spokesperson Stanley Olisa in a statement said Air Peace had been designated on the route and had made progress in meeting “stipulated requirements of aviation authorities” in both countries for scheduled services. He said South Africa has been on the airline’s radar for some time as it reviewed its route network and looked for strategic expansions in line with its “no-city-left-behind” initiative, which aims to interconnect major African cities. Olisa added that Air Peace had also been designated to operate commercial flights to Mumbai Int’l, London Heathrow, Guangzhou, and Houston Intc’l. “We shall continue to strategically increase existing connections to give our customers more network options while also creating more employment opportunities for Nigerians”, he said.