Thursday, August 29, 2024 Air Sénégal halts New York flights amid financial woes, scaling back ambitious growth plans and facing major setbacks in its West African operations. Once aspiring to be a leading airline in West Africa, Air Sénégal’s ambitions have been sharply curtailed by its mounting debts, underperforming routes, and overly optimistic growth plans. The airline recently announced the suspension of its flights to New York’s JFK Airport, effectively ending its operations in the United States for the foreseeable future.
From Ambition to Retrenchment Air Sénégal had set its sights on becoming a symbol of West African aviation prowess, offering routes to Europe and North America with a fleet of modern aircraft, including the Airbus A330neo and A320ceos. However, the airline’s recent decisions to cut back on its network indicate a major step back, nearly to its early operational days. The airline’s reduction in services is disappointing, especially considering its visually striking livery and its investment in state-of-the-art aircraft.
Analyzing the New York Route Suspension In collaboration with Romuald Ngueyap, Editor-in-Chief at NewsAero, we delve into the specific reasons behind the suspension of Air Sénégal’s New York flights and the broader operational challenges the airline faces. The airline’s twice-weekly service between Dakar (DSS) and New York’s JFK Airport will cease operations on September 15, 2024. This marks Air Sénégal.