Lufthansa to suspend flights to Abuja while airport is closed

Lufthansa became the first airline to announce it will suspend its route to Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, while the airport is closed for 6 weeks for repairs. The carrier won’t divert its planes to Kaduna, a city about 140 miles away, a spokeswoman said by Thursday. She didn’t give a reason for the decision. Lufthansa will continue to fly to Lagos, the commercial hub, and Port Harcourt, she said. Nigeria plans to shut Nnamdi Azikiwe International for 6 weeks from March 8 to repair potholes on the runway, which have damaged planes in recent months. “We doubt that the European airlines will fly to Kaduna out of concerns ranging from capacity to whether passengers can be shuttled safely between Kaduna and Abuja,” an analyst at who advises companies about Nigeria said. “Kaduna experienced a kidnapping surge in 2016.” <br/>