Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, will upgrade its Lagos service to daily to meet growing demand from passengers travelling to and from Nigeria.

The airline initially launched its service between Lagos, West Africa’s most populous city, and Abu Dhabi on July 1, 2012, with six flights a week enhancing the links between Nigeria, Africa’s third largest economy, and the United Arab Emirates.

The new daily service will be introduced on March 31, coinciding with the start of the airline’s new summer schedule, and will significantly improve connections between Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates, and beyond to key destinations across the airline’s network in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, India, Malaysia and China.

Maurice Phohleli, Etihad Airways’ General Manager, Nigeria and West Africa, said: “We have received a very positive response from the Nigerian market since launching our service six months ago. Clearly, the people of Nigeria appreciate the superior product and service of the *World’s Leading Airline and we are proud to serve them.

“Our passenger loads are strong and we are confident that this route will continue to support the growing flow of business and leisure travellers who fly from Nigeria to the United Arab Emirates, and onwards over the airline’s hub in Abu Dhabi to key commercial and tourism destinations in the GCC, North and Southeast Asia and markets in the Indian Subcontinent.”

The service, comprising a mix of morning and evening departures, is operated by an Airbus A330-200 aircraft configured to carry 22 Pearl Business class and 240 Coral Economy class passengers.

Etihad Airways recognises the importance of the West African region and is committed to expanding its footprint across the continent. In November 2012, Etihad Cargo, a division of Etihad Airways, re-introduced a weekly freighter service between Abu Dhabi and Lagos which was complemented with the addition of 16 new interline destinations across West Africa.

Etihad Airways currently flies to eight destinations in Africa and the Indian Ocean including: Johannesburg, Khartoum, Casablanca, Cairo, Nairobi, Lagos, Tripoli and Mahé in the Seychelles.

Etihad is considered the World’s Leading Airline by the prestigious World Travel Awards.