Air Peace cleared for Heathrow flights, ending months-long standoff
Nigerian carrier Air Peace will begin direct flights between Abuja and London Heathrow from 26 October 2025, ending a protracted row over access to the UK and Europe’s busiest airport.
The announcement comes after months of high-level diplomatic pressure.
Since launching UK operations in March 2024, Air Peace has been operating flights into London Gatwick, but the airline had long sought a move to Heathroww.
The airline had argued for parity with UK carriers such as British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, which operate into Nigeria’s primary international airports in Lagos and Abuja.
Air Peace to operate from both London airports
“Our daily flights to London are going well. Come October 26, we start Abuja-London. The British authorities have granted Air Peace Heathrow,” Air Peace Chairman Allen Onyema said.
“That is a testament to their belief in what we are doing.”
Onyema said that flights from Abuja to London Heathrow would operate four times weekly, with Lagos to London Gatwick on a three times weekly cycle.
Last September, Nigeria’s minister of aviation and aerospace development, Festus Keyamo, wrote a letter to the UK aviation authorities requesting slots for Air Peace at Heathrow.
The UK government had initially rejected Air Peace’s request for Heathrow slots, stating the applications were submitted too late for the 2024 summer and winter scheduling seasons.
In a formal response to Keyamo, the then-UK Transport Secretary Louise Haigh defended the decision, pointing to timing rather than any political motive.
The letter stated: “As you may be aware, Heathrow Airport is constrained by runway capacity and an air traffic movement limit, which places downward pressure on the number of slots available in any operating season.
“For example, for the Summer 2024 season, a total of 290,580 slots were available, but the number of slots requested reached 319,721.
“Gatwick Airport, the second busiest in the UK, offers many connections to Europe, Asia, and North America. It benefits from a direct, mainline rail connection to central London with comparable travel times to other London airports.
“Several carriers from different nations have developed substantial and successful operations at Gatwick Airport. The department understands the position this puts new entrant carriers in. “
Air Peace expanding its international route network
Onyema added that the airline plans to launch direct flights to Antigua and Barbuda in September, coinciding with the delivery of a fourth Boeing 777 widebody aircraft.
Responding to criticisms around delays and cancellations, Onyema rejected the notion that Nigerian carriers were uniquely affected. “Delays are not synonymous with Nigerian airlines,” he said.
He maintained that Air Peace had achieved over 85 percent on-time performance since May and said that most disruptions are due to external factors beyond the airline’s control.
