Angolan carrier TAAG transports live lions from South Africa to Nigeria 

On August 15, 2026, Angola’s flag carrier TAAG Angola Airlines shared some details about a rather unusual cargo mission it completed earlier the same month: the transportation of two adult lions from Johannesburg (JNB), South Africa to Lagos (LOS), Nigeria. 

The two lions, weighing around 200 kilograms each, were carried aboard a Boeing 737-800F freighter via its hub at Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport (NBJ) in Luanda, Angola. 

While TAAG Cargo, the Angolan carrier’s cargo subsidiary, runs regular air freight operations throughout the African continent, with dedicated services from Luanda to Lagos, Brazzaville, Abidjan, Accra, Kinshasa, Nairobi, Johannesburg, and Lusaka, this operation particularly stands out due to its unusual nature and special operational and regulatory requirements. 

The animals had been in the care of wildlife specialists in South Africa, from which they were then sent to a zoological facility in Lagos, to be cared for in a secure and controlled environment.  

TAAG Angola Airlines highlighted the successful completion of this operation as an example of the possibilities offered by the new Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport, which opened for cargo flights in late 2023, as a trans-shipment point for high value and special freight. 

As of August 2026, the Angolan airline operates two dedicated cargo aircraft, a Boeing 737-700QC, which ch-aviation lists as inactive, and a Boeing 737-800BCF. The latter is the aircraft used to transport the two lions to Nigeria and also acts as the airline’s cargo workhorse, carrying different types of freight across Africa.

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