Runway closure: Airlines count losses

Airline operators and stakeholders in the aviation sector have called for the construction of a second runway at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, as they decried the huge revenue losses suffered by carriers due to the recent closure of the airport’s only runway.

Domestic airline officials at the NAIA told our correspondent on Monday that over 60 flights could not make it into and out of Abuja for the 30 hours that the runway was closed.

It was learnt that foreign airliners like Air France, British Airways, KLM, Ethiopian Airlines and others had to re-route or cancel their flights to and from Abuja during the period.

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria had last week announced that the runway would be closed for 30 hours between Saturday night and Monday morning in order to carry out repairs on the facility.

An official of Arik Air told our correspondent that the airline had to cancel over 30 flights due to the closure.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, said, “Normally, on a week day, we operate around eight flights between Lagos and Abuja, but on a Sundays, it is always around six flights.

“From Abuja to Port Harcourt is around three flights, while we do one flight each from all the state capitals with airports to the Federal Capital Territory. And it might interest you to know that the only state that we don’t fly to that has a functional airport is Katsina.

“All functional airports in Nigeria, we fly there and you can imagine the kind of impact that a 30-hour closure of the runway in Nigeria’s second busiest airport will have on not just our income, but on the revenues of airlines and the sector generally.”

An official of Dana Air said although the closure was for repairs, the airline also lost revenue. The official, however, did not state the amount lost to the runway closure.

“It did not just affect the airlines, passengers were also affected because people who had made travel plans were forced to either cancel or reschedule them although it was for the good of the country,” she said.

On the number of the airline’s flights that could not operate as a result of the runway closure, the official said, “I think we would have operated about five or six flights into Abuja on Sunday.”

Our correspondent also gathered that Aero Contractors, another major player in the domestic market, also cancelled most of its flights.

Officials of the carrier stated that the airline was operating about 22 in and out bound flights from the NAIA.

The President, National Association of Aircraft Pilot and Engineers, Mr. Isaac Balami, said it was wrong for a country like Nigeria to have just one runway at the NAIA

He said, “That a country as big as Nigeria with over 160 million people, in this 21st Century, and considering our GDP and size of our economy in Africa, that we have only one runway in our capital city is unacceptable. It is very wrong.

“Yes, it is capital intensive, but there is a need for us to prioritise. Because what this means is that one day, Mr. President will be coming in to land in Abuja and they will say he cannot land and he will have to land in a close airport to the FCT and drive to the Villa by road.

“We should understand that at any given time, an aircraft can overshoot the runway and it will be closed. If this happens, it means that nobody will be able to land in Abuja. So, there should be a plan B.

“About three years ago, they were supposed to do the second runway. They even did the contract but they said the money was too much and it was cancelled. But looking at what it is costing the country, it is obvious that Abuja needs a second runway. If they can start something this year, by next year it can be ready.”

Late last year, NAIA was shut for about 18 hours after a Saudi B747 cargo aircraft veered off the runway and ran into the maintenance area while landing.