Five months after the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, (MMIA) was shut down to contain the spread of COVID-19, the airport on Saturday came alive again with the commencement of international flights.
Passengers in their numbers were seen putting on their face masks and observing social distancing at the entrance gates of the terminals and inside the terminal building.
Passengers on the Lebanon bound flight which is the first commercial flight to take off from the airport since the shut down were seen presenting their documents and tickets for processing.
Victoria Shina-Aba, the Manager, South-West Airports, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), who spoke to journalists at the airport said It has been five months and 13 days since MMIA was closed to international flights.
Shina-Aba however disclosed that while the airport was on lockdown, the airport processed 192 evacuation and special flights and 1,404 cargo flights.
She said the airport is coming back to life after a lot of things have been put in place to ensure travelers have confidence in traveling again.
On the various steps passengers will have to go through, she said, departing passengers are no longer expected to come to the airport with many people as non-traveling passengers can only stay at the drop off zone of the terminal.
“We have been able to demarcate the gates. The first gate is for crew and staff only. The B and C gates are for passengers. We have another gate for the elderly and special people. At each of these gates, we have water provided for passengers to wash their hands. We have bag sanitizing stations where passengers get their bags sanitized. Then the temperature of passengers is taken.
“At the passenger gate, we have infra-red cameras that can capture many people at the same time. If you try to access the place without face masks, it will indicate that your face mask is not on. We have signs everywhere telling people what to do. The security will not allow passengers without face masks in. We have sanitizers at the gates.
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“If you have a temperature higher than the normal, the Port health will take you to a place that has been provided just to sit down for a while and check you again after some minutes. If you are okay, you will be allowed to travel,” she explained.
She said that FAAN has done some social distance markings and people queue according to the markings and passengers and staff do not have direct contact.
She assured that FAAN staff are always on stand-by to infect things that are touched by passengers regularly and boarding is also done in batches.
Shina-Aba said the Presidential Task Force (PTF) and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) have put up some protocols that passengers need to follow when they arrive.
“Passengers should have tested for COVID-19 at most 96 hours before arrival. Passengers are supposed to register with a provided portal and pay for another COVID-19 test seven days after arrival. They are to fill a form that will include their itinerary, country of departure, and other travel histories. This is also provided on the same portal.
“After this, they will get a barcode. At port health, they will check your temperature, the barcode, and COVID-19 status. The barcode is for Port health to monitor and ensure people still go back for the tests,” she added.
In a document signed by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) it stated the flight schedules for airlines.
On Mondays, flights that will be operated at Lagos airport include Turkish Airlines, Air Senegal, Virgin Atlantic, Qatar, AWA, Emirates, British Airways (BA) while BA, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Asky, and Air Cote d’Ivoire will operate at Abuja airport.
On Tuesdays, flights that will be operated at Lagos airport include BA, Asky, Egypt Air, Ethiopian Airlines, and Air Cote d’Ivoire while BA, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, AWA, Turkish Airlines will operate from Abuja airport.
Delta, Emirates, Turkish, Air Senegal, Ethiopian Airlines, AWA, Kenya Airways, MEA will operate in Lagos airport on Wednesdays while BA, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Asky, Air Cote d’Ivoire, and AWA will operate in Abuja same day.
For Thursdays, BA, Delta, Egypt Air, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Virgin, Qatar, and AWA will operate in Lagos airport while BA, Egypt Air, Emirates, AWA, Ethiopian Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and Air Cote d’Ivoire will operate in Abuja airport.
On Fridays, Air Senegal, Asky, Emirates, Turkish Airlines, AWA, Kenya Airways, and MEA will operate from Lagos Airport while BA, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, AWA, and Middle East Airlines will operate in Abuja airport.
On Saturdays, BA, Delta, Qatar, AWA, Kenya Airways, MEA, and Air Cote d’Ivoire will operate from Lagos Airport while BA, Egypt Air, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, AWA, MEA, and Turkish Airlines will operate from Abuja airport.
Delta, Air Senegal, Virgin Atlantic, Emirates, AWA, Kenya Airways, and Turkish Airlines will operate from Lagos airport on Sundays while BA, Egypt Air, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Asky, and Air Cote d’Ivoire will operate from Abuja airport.
