Emirates, the international airline of the UAE, launched a new direct service to Dakar, the capital city of Senegal today (September 1), making it the airline’s 105th destination.

The new route, which is the only non-stop, scheduled passenger link, will cut current journey times between Dubai and Senegal by around the equivalent of an eight hour working day.

“Today marks a new chapter in air travel between the Middle East and West Africa. No more will passengers travelling to and from Senegal face long detours to Europe or other parts of Africa to reach their final destination,” said Nigel Page, senior vice president of commercial operations, Africa & the Americas.

“Instead, they can enjoy the convenience of a non-stop air link with Dubai, seamless connections to key centres in the Middle East, the Indian Sub-continent, Asia and the Far East through our state-of-the-art Terminal 3, a very competitive baggage allowance and the award-winning in-flight service for which Emirates is renowned."

An Airbus A340-300 is being deployed on the four-flights-a-week route, offering 12 seats in First Class, 42 in Business and 213 in Economy.

Page added: “Our new Dakar service is a further demonstration of Emirates’ commitment to investing in and supporting the development of its pan-African footprint.”

“Not only is the service already paying dividends through the creation of new jobs, such as our first Senegalese cabin crew and sales staff, but it will provide a significant long-term boost to trade and commerce in both the Middle East and West Africa,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service