Niger Suspends Commercial Flights with Nigeria

The Nigerien government has announced the suspension of all commercial flights to and from Nigeria, as confirmed by the African and Madagascar Air Navigation Safety Agency.

According to a statement released by the agency, "The airspace of the Republic of Niger remains open to all international and domestic commercial flights except those to and from Nigeria," as reported by the French magazine "Jeune Afrique."

This move by Niger will not impact commercial aviation operating within Nigerian airspace unless the flights intend to land in Niger.

The African and Madagascar Air Navigation Safety Agency further clarified that Niger's airspace has been consistently closed to all military, operational, and other private flights, a policy that has been in effect since August 6th.

Only flights with prior authorization from the relevant authorities are exempt from this restriction.

The decision to halt commercial flights between Niger and Nigeria comes shortly after Niger, along with Burkina Faso and Mali, withdrew from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), currently chaired by Nigerian President Bola Tinubu.

ECOWAS, having condemned the coups in the aforementioned countries, imposed severe sanctions on Niger following the July 26th, 2023 coup in Niamey, even threatening military intervention to restore constitutional order.

The African and Madagascar Air Navigation Safety Agency, headquartered in Dakar, Senegal, includes 18 member states (17 African countries and France) and has been providing air navigation services within its member states' airspace since 1959.

The agency also offers search and rescue services, aircraft firefighting, aeronautical information, and meteorological information essential for air navigation.