NIGERIA –  The Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, has formally been reopened for operations, one day ahead of the deadline, after six weeks of closure. And coincidentally, on Tuesday at about 11:00am, an Ethiopian Airlines new Airbus A350-900 became the first plane to land at the newly renovated runway.
Our correspondent in Nigeria also added that some local airlines in the country, including Medview and Air Peace, have indicated their decision to start traveling the Abuja route from today, Wednesday April 2017.
The Federal Government had promised that the airport would reopen on Wednesday even as the Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, put his job on the line, promising to resign if the rehabilitation of the runway was not completed in six weeks.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) Managing Director, Engr. Saleh Dunoma, had said the repair work was completed while the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) had inspected it and certified the airport.
Airlines and most of the Nigerian populace also commended the Federal Government for fulfilling the promise to reopen the airport earlier before the fixed day, saying they would resume flights in and out of the airport and business transactions will would take a new promising shape respectively.
According to DAILY TRUST, an operator said, “We are happy that the Federal Government kept to its promise and in due course, we will also resume Abuja flights.”
