Washington Dakar Nonstop Flights End March 2026

Published on Nov 21, 2025, 6:36 pm CST

7 min read

Key points

United will end Washington Dulles to Dakar nonstop flights after March 5, 2026, removing its only route to Senegal
The IAD to DSS service launched in May 2025 as a three times weekly Boeing 767 flight but is being cut in a long haul network reshuffle
Seasonal Newark to Stockholm service will also not return for summer 2026, ending United branded links to both Senegal and Scandinavia
Delta will remain the only US carrier with nonstop New York JFK to Dakar flights and has already boosted winter frequencies in recent seasons
Travelers booked after March 5, 2026, can request rerouting via partners or hubs like JFK, Paris, Amsterdam, and Brussels or ask for refunds

Impact

Where Impacts Are Most Likely: Travelers starting in the Washington D C region who relied on Dulles for nonstop or one stop Dakar itineraries will see fewer through ticket options and more backtracking
Best Times To Fly: Overnight eastbound flights from New York and major European hubs to Dakar will remain the most reliable options, so travelers should target those rather than marginal same day connections from Washington
Connections And Misconnect Risk: After the cut, most Washington to Dakar trips will rely on two segment itineraries through JFK or Europe, so travelers should leave at least three hours for connections and avoid self connecting tickets
What Travelers Should Do Now: Anyone already booked on United between Washington Dulles and Dakar after March 5, 2026, should monitor their reservation, contact United or their travel advisor for reaccommodation options, and consider proactively shifting to Delta or European carriers
Onward Travel And Changes: Travelers using Dakar as a gateway to West Africa should check schedules on regional airlines and adjust plans to reflect later arrival times when routing via New York or Europe instead of the former Dulles nonstop

Washington Dakar nonstop flights on United Airlines will end in early March 2026, cutting a rare direct link between the U S capital region and Senegal. United has confirmed that its three times weekly service between Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) and Blaise Diagne International Airport (DSS) will stop after the March 5, 2026, departure as part of a long haul network reshuffle that also removes seasonal Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) to Stockholm Arlanda Airport (ARN) service from next summer's schedule. Travelers who counted on a single plane from Dulles to reach Dakar will now have to connect through New York or Europe and should start adjusting 2026 plans.

In practical terms, the Washington Dakar nonstop flights are being treated as a permanent exit rather than a seasonal pause, which will push most passengers in the Washington, D C catchment onto connections through John F Kennedy International Airport (JFK) or through European hubs like Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG), Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS), and Brussels Airport (BRU). The change reduces nonstops to Senegal from two U S gateways to one and shifts more West Africa bound demand toward Delta and European carriers.

United only entered the Senegal market in 2025, positioning the IAD to DSS flight as a year round link operated three times weekly with Boeing 767 300ER aircraft. Airport and airline releases at launch highlighted connections from Blaise Diagne to more than 60 destinations across the Americas via Dulles and framed the service as a bridge between Washington and Francophone West Africa. Schedules data still show United as the only carrier operating direct IAD to DSS flights at three frequencies per week, with block times of just over eight hours.

Less than a year after that launch, however, GDS inventory and network briefings now show the IAD to DSS route being pulled on March 5, 2026, while Newark to Stockholm, which had already ended for the 2025 summer, will not return in 2026 as once planned. Several route trackers and industry outlets note that both cities disappear entirely from United's 2026 destination list, which means the airline will no longer serve either Senegal or Scandinavia with its own metal. Some reports quote a final IAD to DSS flight on March 4 rather than March 5, reflecting schedule cut off differences, but all agree that the service stops in the first week of March and does not reappear in summer 2026 timetables.

United has not given a detailed public breakdown of the route's financial performance, but coverage citing network planning sources points to softer than expected demand and better returns on alternative long haul leisure routes that can use the same 767 300ER fleet. Analysts also point to rising competition for Dakar traffic from New York and Montreal, where Delta's JFK to Dakar flights have built a strong following and new services such as Air Transat's planned Montreal to Dakar route are entering the market.

Background: How The Washington Dakar Route Fit The Network

When United launched the Washington Dulles to Dakar flight in May 2025, it joined existing African destinations from Dulles such as Accra, Lagos, and Cape Town, and was pitched as the airline's first Francophone West Africa route. From a network design perspective, Dulles is United's main transatlantic and Africa gateway on the U S East Coast, feeding traffic from around the United States into overnight departures. Dakar's Blaise Diagne, about 40 km from central Dakar in Senegal's Thiès region, is itself a regional hub with growing traffic and a modern terminal designed to handle several million passengers per year.

For Washington based travelers, the nonstop shaved time off older routings via Europe and removed the need to double connect through both a U S and European hub. For Senegalese travelers headed to smaller U S cities, it created one stop options via Dulles that were competitive with European carriers. The route's relatively short stage length for an Africa flight, around eight hours, also made it easier to schedule as a three days per week pattern within United's 767 fleet.

What Replaces The Washington Dakar Nonstop

Once the IAD to DSS flight is gone, the most direct U S option for Dakar will be Delta's New York JFK to Dakar service, which runs three times weekly year round and has already seen winter boosts to a fourth weekly frequency in recent seasons. For travelers starting in the Washington area, that means first flying up to JFK, then continuing overnight to Dakar. This adds complexity and misconnect risk, especially in winter, compared with the single plane option from Dulles.

European carriers and their partners will form the other main alternative. Air France via Paris Charles de Gaulle, Brussels Airlines via Brussels, and other European airlines already carry significant U S to Dakar traffic through their hubs, and they are likely to become the default for many Washington origin travelers once United's nonstop is removed. These itineraries often involve a Washington to Europe flight followed by a shorter southbound sector into Blaise Diagne, which can work well if scheduled with long enough connections but may involve overnight stays if weather or slot constraints cause delays.

United and partner airlines are expected to offer reaccommodation on alliance partners or interline services where available, but the exact options will depend on fare class, ticket type, and whether the itinerary includes separate or through tickets. Travelers booked after March 5, 2026, should see automatic rebookings populate into their reservations over the coming weeks, but they will generally have the right to request different routings or refunds if the changes no longer meet their needs.

Rebooking, Refunds, And How To Protect Your Trip

Most airlines, including United, treat a permanent route cancellation as a significant schedule change, which usually unlocks flexibility even on nonrefundable tickets. In similar cases, United has offered passengers the choice of rerouting through another hub, moving travel to different dates, or requesting a full refund when the new itinerary is not reasonably comparable to the original. Travelers who booked through a travel advisor should coordinate changes through that advisor, since agency issued tickets sometimes require adjustments in the booking channel used.

If you are holding a Washington to Dakar itinerary in late winter or spring 2026, the safest move is to check your reservation now and see whether the operating carrier and routing still show as IAD to DSS nonstop. If the flight number has disappeared or the system has automatically rerouted you, look closely at connection times and total travel time. In general, leave at least three hours to connect through JFK or a European hub, and avoid self connecting separate tickets that do not protect you in case of delay.

Travelers planning new trips to Senegal or wider West Africa in late 2026 and beyond should assume that the Washington Dakar nonstop flights will not be available and instead build their plans around Delta's JFK to Dakar flight or European hub options. That planning should include more conservative buffer times and, in some cases, an overnight in New York or Europe before continuing to Dakar, especially for mission critical trips where missing a meeting or event would be costly.

For a broader sense of how West Africa fits into changing tourism flows and investment patterns, it is worth reading coverage of the recent $6 billion United Arab Emirates Africa tourism investment plan, which shows how demand is likely to grow even as airline networks continue to shift. Our evergreen guide to West Africa flights and hubs explains how to compare routes via Europe, the Gulf, and U S gateways and will help travelers keep future Dakar trips resilient even as specific flights come and go. See also UAE Africa Tourism Investment Plan and Guide To West Africa Flights And Hubs.