FG to reopen Lagos, Abuja, three other airports June 21

The Federal Government has said only five airports in the country will be operational from June 21 while others are to remain closed for further assessment.

The FG made its position known in a June 1 circular to airlines signed by the Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, Capt. Musa Nuhu, ahead of the June 21 date for the resumption of domestic flights in the country

The NCAA stressed in the circular that Nigeria’s airspace was still closed to international flights, while domestic flights could resume from June 21, as announced by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19.

According to Nuhu, “The closure of Nigerian airports to domestic flights has been extended to 2300hrs on 20th June 2020.

“The gradual start of domestic flight operations will commence on 21st June 2020 with Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport Abuja, Murtala Muhammed International Airport Lagos, Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport Kano, Omagwa International Airport Port Harcourt, and Sam Mbakwe Airport Owerri.

“Other airports will be gradually added to the network after a review and assessment.”

Nigeria’s airports and airspace were shut in March on the orders of President Muhammadu Buhari as part of efforts to check the spread of the Coronavirus.

Both local and international commercial flight operations had since stopped, but the President’s directive allowed the operation of essential flights, including those for medical and evacuation purposes.

But the PTF, during its briefing in Abuja on June 1, advised the aviation sector to begin to develop protocols that would lead to the resumption of domestic flights any time from June 21.

“The aviation industry is requested to start developing protocols to allow for domestic flights to resume anytime from the 21st of June onwards,” PTF National Coordinator, Sani Aliyu, said.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.