United Airlines launched its new nonstop year-round three-times weekly service between Dakar and Washington DC with an inaugural flight on Tuesday.
The new route is the airline’s first service between Senegal and the United States.
Dakar is United’s sixth destination in Africa and it is the only airline connecting the city with Washington DC.
The introduction of the flights marks yet another significant step in United’s ongoing expansion across Africa and follows the launch of the airline’s new seasonal service between Marrakesh and New York/Newark in October last year.
United also flies from Cape Town to New York/Newark and Washington; Johannesburg to New York/Newark; Accra to Washington; and Lagos to Washington. United’s new service to Dakar will help further Africa’s growing tourism industry.
“We are excited to launch United’s first ever service from Senegal, further expanding our route network from Africa to the US,” said United Airlines Senior Vice President of Global Network Planning and Alliances, Patrick Quayle.
“Travellers from Senegal will benefit from a direct service to the US capital as well as the possibility to connect seamlessly via our Washington Dulles hub to 65 destinations across the Americas, while our US customers can take advantage of Dakar’s central location on Africa’s west coastline, making it the perfect gateway to Africa, with pristine beaches, lush forests and rich archaeological history.”
Limak AIBD Summa (LAS) General Director, Askin Demir, said by welcoming United Airlines to Blaise Diagne Airport (AIBD), the country was opening a new route for connections to America.
“The arrival of United Airlines, one of the largest airlines in the United States, will offer travellers from AIBD more connections to the United States and beyond …allowing us to enhance our commercial offer for the American destination, while also reinforcing our connection network in our main markets, which are West Africa and Europe.
“This new flight is also a major asset for the development of tourism, thereby strengthening the leisure market segment, which already holds a significant share of traffic at Dakar Airport. In its airport development strategy, LAS aims to strengthen the airport's capacity in the short term through a programme to increase the resources available for airport operators. This will allow us to better meet the expectations of our clients, an evolution that confirms Senegal's growing positioning as a regional hub in Africa.”
US Ambassador to Senegal, Michael Raynor, said the airline was launching not just a new route but new ways to bring the two nations closer together.
“United’s entry into Francophone West Africa, with Senegal as its first destination, speaks volumes about the boundless potential that the United States private sector and government see in this region, and in Senegal in particular as a dynamic and democratic hub with a strategic location, a fast-growing economy, and a talented workforce.
“I’m particularly excited that this new route will make it easier for more Americans to discover Senegal – this wonderful land of cultural vibrancy, boundless potential, and the generous spirit of Teranga.”
The new service between Dakar and Washington is part of United’s largest international expansion in its history, adding six new destinations and nine new routes across the Atlantic for customers this summer.
United is launching five new flights from its hub in New York/Newark to destinations no other US airline serves, including Nuuk, Greenland; Bilbao, Spain; Palermo, Italy; and Madeira and Faro, Portugal.
The airline is also adding three new routes from Washington/Dulles, including its first-ever flight to Dakar, and new seasonal flights to Nice and Venice, as well as a new seasonal service between Rome and Denver.
United is the largest airline in the world, as measured by available seat miles, and flies to more international destinations than any other US carrier.
