*Woman Delivers in Flight
The federal government has recorded its first evacuation of Nigerian citizens abroad with the airlift of 262 of the country’s nationals from the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday.
The flight which left Dubai for Lagos at about 10:00 am Nigerian time after all the passengers were tested and found to be coronavirus free, had to return to base 60 minutes into the flight, as a lady gave birth while the flight was airborne.
The flight, Boeing 777-300 with registration mark, EK783, returned to the airport and disembarked the woman and her baby and later resumed the flight and finally arrived the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos by 7:28 pm Nigerian time.
A schedule released by the Foreign Affairs Ministry said the first batch of evacuees of 265 from Dubai would arrive Nigeria Wednesday, May 6, 2020, another 300 persons are to arrive from London on Friday May 10 on British Airways and on Monday, 11th May Ethiopian Airline would airlift those coming from United States of America.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Mission in the US has made changes in the planned evacuation of Nigerians from the US due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
The Consulate-General of Nigeria in New York who announced the changes in a statement issued on behalf of the Nigerian Missions in the U.S, said the evacuation which was earlier scheduled for this Sunday May 10, has been moved forward to Saturday May 9th. Also changed is the flight number from ET 509 announced earlier to ET 8509 by the same carrier, Ethiopian Airlines.
The statement added that the list of evacuees would be prioritised according to their immigration status.
“This includes the need to consider those stranded with proof of short-stay visas, the elderly, families with children and returning students,” the statement read
According to the statement, 270 out of the 700 Nigerians who have shown interest to return home, will be evacuated on Saturday and then others will be evacuated in batches on a first come, first serve basis.
The Consulate indicated that the port of departure remains the Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey and departure time, 9.15p.m and that the plane is expected to arrive Nigeria via the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on May 10 at 11:15 a.m.
“Those already booked on Ethiopian Airlines ET 509 will now be transferred by the airline to the new flight ET 8509 on Saturday, May 9, 2020. The projected cost for the one-way economy ticket is between 1,300 dollars (N488, 800) and 1,700 dollars (N639, 200) per adult” the statement from the Consulate read
