Victor Ezeja
Leading Nigerian airline, Air Peace, is set to begin direct flight operations from Nigeria to Israel on Thursday, 20th April.
This was disclosed by the airline in a tweet on Sunday, 15th April where it called on customers who intend to fly to Israel to book tickets for the inaugural flight.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe airline said it will operate direct non-stop flights from Nigeria to Tel Aviv, the capital city of Israel.
“Are you ready for Israel kick-off? Save the date- April 20, 2023. Direct, nonstop flight connectivity to Tel Aviv from Lagos and Abuja. Book now on flyairpeace.com or our mobile app. See you on the inaugural flight!” the airline tweeted on Sunday.
The Israeli Ambassador to Nigeria, Michael Freeman, also corroborated the development during a media chat with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday.
Freeman said Air Peace will operate direct flights from Nigeria to Tel Aviv twice weekly, adding that it would strengthen business opportunities and tourism potentials between the two countries.
The Israeli envoy said the development was possible due to the support of Nigeria’s government.
“On April 20, we will be starting direct air links between Israel and Nigeria; there will be twice weekly flights from Lagos, Abuja, and Tel Aviv with Air Peace airline,” Freeman said.
“This would not have been possible without efforts by the current administration. The ministers of aviation and foreign affairs were instrumental in making this happen.
“Now, it is important for us to make it clear that this government made this happen and we have to understand the positive differences these flights will make.
“At the moment, if you plan to fly to Israel, you have to go through Ethiopian, Turkish, or British airlines and experience 13 hours of delays overseas, whereas a direct flight is five hours and 20 minutes.
“The direct flights will do a number of things; especially, they will bring our countries closer together.”
Air Peace, a leading airline in Sub-Saharan Africa, has consistently been on a route expansion drive both locally and internationally.
On 31st March, the airline launched direct, nonstop flight services from Nigeria to Mumbai, the capital city of Maharashtra State in Southwestern India.
The Chief Operating Officer of Air Peace, Oluwatoyin Olajide, had said that launching the Mumbai flight service is an indication of the airline’s strong commitment to international route expansion.
Olajide said: “The Mumbai route is our fourth international destination and is strongly indicative of our unwavering commitment to continually expand our route network to meet the evolving travel needs of not only the Nigerian market but also the West African sub-region.
“On May 31, 2020, Air Peace became the first ever Nigerian airline to operate the first direct flight from Nigeria to Kochi, India, airlifting 312 Indian citizens. In the same year and in early 2021, we operated more than six evacuation flights afterward, showing our strength and familiarisation with the Indian airspace.”
The airline which started with two weekly flight frequencies to Mumbai also has plans to begin flying to Delhi.
On the local scene, the airline also resumed flight services to Makurdi, the Benue State capital in Nigeria on Thursday, 13 April, with three weekly flights from Lagos and Abuja.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
