Air Senegal is undergoing a major restructuring of its flight network, announcing the suspension of flights to seven international destinations starting later this month. The airline, which has been experiencing operational difficulties and challenges in maintaining profitability on certain long-haul and regional routes, cites these factors as the primary reasons for this decision.
Effective September 19th, Air Senegal will discontinue its services to New York John F. Kennedy (JFK) Airport. The following day, on September 20th, flights to Milan Malpensa in Italy, Libreville in Gabon, Douala in Cameroon, and Barcelona in Spain will be halted. Lastly, services to Marseille and Lyon, both located in France, will cease on September 22nd.
With these changes, Air Senegal will no longer operate in Cameroon, Gabon, Italy, Spain, or the United States. However, the airline will continue serving France through direct flights to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport.
Air Senegal was established in May 2018 as the successor to Senegal Airlines, which operated from 2011 to 2016. The airline currently boasts a fleet of eight aircraft, including two Airbus A319s, one A321, one A330-900, two ATR 72-600s, and two Let L-410s, according to CAPA – Centre for Aviation data.
Air Senegal’s longest route, spanning 3,825 miles (3,324 nautical miles), connected Dakar Blaise Diagne International Airport (DSS) to New York JFK, its sole U.S. service. Launched in September 2021, this route initially connected DSS to JFK with a continuation to Baltimore Washington International Airport. Air Senegal operated the DSS-JFK route twice weekly, based on OAG Schedules Analyser data. Following the suspension of this route, Delta Air Lines’ thrice-weekly DSS-JFK flights will remain the sole nonstop connection between Senegal and the U.S.
For the week commencing September 2nd, Air Senegal operated 28 nonstop routes with 25,700 weekly seats. It holds the largest market share within Senegal, controlling 25.3% of capacity, ahead of Ethiopian Airlines with 9.3% and Brussels Airlines with 8.2%.
