Despite the rejection of the planned closure of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja for major rehabilitation of the runway, industry experts have insisted that to avert major accident and ensure safety the airport must be closed for thorough and comprehensive work to be done at the facility.
The former General Manager, Corporate Communication of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mr. Yakubu Dati said that all over the world airports with single runway are closed when such major work is to be done on the runway, noting that if the initial plan were allowed for the airport to have a second runway this closure would not have been necessary.
Dati who is a specialist in airport operations, noted that there is on-going repair work at the Heathrow Airport in London but the airport has two runways so there is partial closure, as the other runway is taking inbound and outbound flights.
“If we had taken the bold step then to build a second runway the airport would not have closed for this major repair but now closing the airport has become inevitable for a quality work to be done. The runway has to be closed because its middle which takes the weight of the aircraft at landing is caving in and needs serious repair work to fortify it, as it is projected that in the foreseeable future more aircraft would be landing at that airport,” Dati said.
He also noted that those who oppose the closure needed to understand that an efficient work that could stand the test of time would not be done if the runway is put in partial use while the work is going on.
Before government’s decision to close the airport for comprehensive repairs, intermittent rehabilitation had been done at the runway over the years and it continued to deteriorate as it takes daily landings from aircraft of different sizes.
The airport is second busiest in Nigeria after the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
Many airlines have had their aircraft damaged by the runway, from the Saudi Arabia cargo airplane to South Africa Airways flight and the damage on Emirates aircraft at landing, which was one of the reasons why the airline decided to pull its operations from the airport.
Dati observed that there should be understanding between the federal government and the airlines on the closure of the airport because it is for the safety of the aircraft that would be using the runway, adding that if good job is done on the runway, it would still serve the country until a second runway is built at the airport.
He said the runway life span was 20 years but it has been used 14 years beyond its expiring date, adding that a second runway at the airport is a critical necessity.
