5 Cities: Emirates begins rebuilding its African network
After pausing flights in December, Dubai-based Emirates has resumed flights from five African countries, including Ghana, Guinea, Angola, Ivory Coast, and Uganda. The airline had suspended flights late last year owing to omicron concerns.
Emirates partially reboots its African network
In a travel advisory posted late last week, Emirates confirmed the resumption of services to Gbessia International Airport in Conakry, Guinea; Entebbe International Airport in Entebbe, Uganda; Kotoka International Airport, in Accra, Ghana; Port Bouët Airport in Abidjan, Ivory Coast; and Quatro de Fevereiro International Airport, in Luanda, Angola. Flights resumed on January 13. Emirates notes flights to and from Nigeria have not recommenced.
Emirates is now flying a Boeing 777 between Dubai (DXB) and Conakry (CKY) four times a week. The ten-hour flight to the Guinean capital departs Dubai at breakfast time for an early afternoon arrival. The return flight leaves Conakry mid-afternoon and flies through the night to arrive in the UAE in time for breakfast the next day.
Flights to Entebbe are now operating five days a week with a mid-morning push back from Dubai and a mid-afternoon arrival into Entebbe (EBB). The return flight departs Entebbe late in the afternoon for an arrival in Dubai later that evening. Flying time between the two cities is around five hours and 15 minutes.
Emirates Accra – Abidjan tag flights
Emirates is back to jetting down to Ghana’s capital every day. The eight-and-a-half-hour flight operated by a Boeing 777 leaves Dubai at breakfast for a lunchtime touch down in Accra (ACC). After several hours on the ground, the plane departs Accra early in the evening to land back in Dubai just after 06:00 the following morning.
The daily flights to Accra continue onto neighboring Abidjan (ABJ). After landing in Accra and spending 90 minutes on the ground, the Boeing continues onto Abidjan. The flying time between Accra and Abidjan is 60 minutes.
That flight touches down in Abidjan mid-afternoon and spends two hours on the ground there before returning to Accra. After picking up Dubai-bound passengers there, the jet continues its journey home.
The final resuming service are the four-times-a-week Boeing 777 flights between Dubai and Luanda (LAD), Angola. The service pushes back from Dubai mid-morning for the eight-hour flight south to the Angolan capital, landing there mid-afternoon. The return service departs Luanda early evening for a slightly shattering 04:40 arrival in Dubai the following day.
Further work needed to restore Emirates’ African network
A big hole in Emirates’ African network remains South Africa. Usually, the airline flies to Johannesburg, Durban, and Cape Town. However, flights to Durban and Cape Town remain suspended while Emirates only carries inbound passengers to Johannesburg.
Emirates also normally flies to Addis Ababa (ADD), Algiers (ALG), Cairo (CAI), Casablanca (CMN), Dakar (DSS), Dar Es Saleem (DAR), Harare (HRE), Khartoum (KRT), Lusaka (LUN), Nairobi (NBO), and Tunis (TUN) on the continent.
However, the airline advises they have canceled flights to and from Nairobi, Lusaka, Harare, Lagos, Abuja, and Casablanca until further notice. Passengers originating in either Dar Es Saleem or Addis Ababa are also not allowed to travel to or through Dubai until further notice.
Emirates stresses that while flights from Ghana, Guinea, Angola, Ivory Coast, and Uganda have resumed, specific travel requirements apply to passengers coming from these ports who intend to either enter Dubai or transit through Dubai.
