Nigeria To Close Airport In Abuja, The Capital, For Repairs

Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. AFP

Nigeria on Monday announced the imminent closure of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, the capital, for six weeks to repair the runway.

Associated Press report continues:

The airport closure likely could delay the return home of President Muhammadu Buhari, who left the country on vacation on Jan. 19 and who has remained in London for medical treatment of an undisclosed condition.

Information Minister Lai Mohammed told a news conference that Abuja International Airport will be closed from Wednesday until April 9 for repairs to the runway, which experts say is in shocking disrepair. A South African Airways jet was damaged on landing there in August.

The government has urged airlines to fly instead to the small airport in Kaduna, 250-kilometers (155-miles) north of Abuja accessible by a highway notorious for accidents, hijackings and kidnappings.

All international airlines except Ethiopian Airlines have temporarily cancelled flights and said that they will not fly to Kaduna, apparently fearing for their passengers' safety.

Airlines including British Airways, Air France and Delta will continue to fly to Nigeria's economic hub of Lagos, but the closure of the capital's airport means a major disruption for government and private business.

The government has said it will provide security for buses to shuttle passengers from Kaduna airport to Abuja. On Monday, police beefed up security on the road, Premium Times newspaper reported. It quoted police chief Ibrahim Idris as saying measures include explosives-sniffing dogs at the airport and 24-hour helicopter surveillance of the highway.

Is Kaduna Airport Ready For Abuja Traffic?

BBC Africa Live reports that intensive work is underway at Nigeria's Kaduna airport some 190km (120 miles) north of the capital Abuja, ahead of a planned relocation of international flights from the main airport in Abuja. 

The airport will handle traffic for the next six weeks while Abuja runway is repaired. 

An official from the Federal Aviation Authority of Nigerian (FAAN) told Reuters news agency that workers were working round the clock to have the airport ready. 

Most floor and ceiling tiles have been fitted and all air conditioning units have been installed, but electrical fittings are unfinished, chairs for the arrival and departure areas lie strewn about and a car park expansion is incomplete, Reuters reports.   

Several international airlines have refused to operate flights to Kaduna as they worry about the safety of their passengers in a region that has been known for kidnappings. 

Henrietta Yakubu from the FAA has been telling BBC's Focus on Africa programme about plans to protect passengers, including using luxury buses and police escorts: 

Airlines threatened to stop flying to Abuja due to safety concerns over runway condition

British Airways , Lufthansa and South African Airways have refused to fly into Kaduna. Ethiopian Airlines has however said it will use the alternative airport. 

An official from FAAN told Reuters that police have been deployed to the region to ensure passenger safety and that roads leading to the airport had been fixed.

Kaduna airport can handle up to 500 passengers at one time, equivalent to three or four short-haul jets, the report says.

Data from Nigeria's airport authority shows Abuja airport handled 4,859 domestic flights in December compared with the 171 that flew in or out of Kaduna, it adds.