George Bush Intercontinental Airport: Continental to fly Dreamliner from Houston to Nigeria in 2011
25-Jun-2010 Continental Airlines announced plans to launch new daily nonstop flights between Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) and Lagos, Nigeria, beginning Nov. 10, 2011, subject to government approval.
“The Houston Airport System (HAS) is excited about the possibility of adding this historic African route,” says Mario C. Diaz, director of aviation. “It will be the first daily scheduled service offered between Texas and Africa and it will create growth in Houston’s energy industry, linking the two energy capitals.”
With the addition of flights to Africa, Houston will become one of just four cities in the world - and the only city in the Western Hemisphere - to have nonstop service to every inhabited continent on the globe.
Proposed Schedule
Continental will operate the approximately 6,500-mile flight with a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft, seating 36 customers in BusinessFirst and 192 customers in economy class.
Flying times will be approximately 11 hours eastbound, and 12 hours 30 minutes westbound. The new flight will reduce travel time between the two cities by over four hours by eliminating any connection en route.
The preliminary schedule for the new service is as follows:
| Leave Houston | Arrive Lagos | Leave Lagos | Arrive Houston | |
| Winter | 3:45 p.m. | 9:40 a.m. (next day) | 11:10 a.m. | 4:40 p.m. (same day) |
| Summer | 3:50 p.m. | 9:15 a.m. (next day) | 10:45 a.m. | 4:40 p.m. (same day) |
The flight will be timed to provide convenient connections at Continental's Houston hub to more than 100 other cities throughout the U.S., Canada, Latin America and the Pacific. Reservations and ticket sales will be available for the new route later this year.
Continental currently serves 63 international destinations nonstop from Houston and recently announced plans to begin nonstop service between Houston and Auckland beginning Nov. 16, 2011, subject to government approval.