Nigerian Travellers Elated as Neos Begins Lagos-Milan Flight

Chinedu Eze

The long awaited flight between Nigeria and Italy has become a reality as Italian flag carrier, Neos Airline has announced commencement of direct flight service between Lagos and Milan end of October.

Milan is Italian business nerve centre, known for its awe-inspiring fashion industry; landmarks like Milan Cathedral, La Scala, and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II and refined and delicious cuisine, hence the choice of the city as destination from Lagos.

The airline will operate the route using a Boeing 787-800 before deploying a wider body aircraft and it records higher load factor.

The airline which will commence operations once weekly for one month, will increase to three weekly flights afterwards, as designated by the Nigerian government.

Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of the Sky Master, Princewill Ogbonna, noted that the debut of the airline operation will further strengthen the relationship between Nigeria and Italy. 

 Ogbonna explained that Neo airline is a private Italian airline, headquartered in Somma Lombardo, Lombardy.  

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, Ambassador  Italian Ambassador, the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development expressed happiness for the resumption of direct flight between Italy and Nigeria.

The Minister who was represented by Alex Kefas, the Director of the European Affairs Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,  described the launch of the airline’s direct trip to Nigeria as an, “official re-launch of the Nigeria-Italy Airlinks. I would like to seize the opportunity and to use this occasion to congratulate the SkyMaster partnership and other stakeholders for concretising our long-awaited dreams.” 

Speaking earlier at the event, Ugo Boni, the Italian Consul General in Nigeria,  expressed delight at the development, saying the direct flight to Nigeria from Italy is long overdue.