It is with excitement and high expectation that domestic and international airline operators welcomed the announcement of the return to the Abuja Airport after six weeks of shutting down the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja and making Kaduna Airport alternate airport for diversion of flights.
For six weeks, from March 8, 2017, the Abuja Airport has been shut down in a bid to rehabilitate its runway, which became a safety issue as important infrastructure in the airport had decayed badly.
During these six weeks, Kaduna Airport experienced a flurry of activities, all domestic airlines and few foreign airlines rescheduled their operations to Kaduna to cater for the influx of passengers.
The airport, which usually receives local flights of not more than a hundred passengers a day, sprang to life automatically and within a space of 11days, the Kaduna airport broke a record in passenger traffic.
According to data submitted to the Presidency by the Federal Government Coordinating Committee overseeing the management of the Airport repair, closure and relocation, more than 43,000 passengers passed through the Kaduna Airport, more than the 41,000 passengers it recorded in the entire first quarter of 2015, and the 21,000 in the first quarter of 2016.
Also, during this period, about 10,000 passengers took advantage of the free Bus Shuttle organised by the Federal Government to transport passengers between the Abuja and Kaduna Airports.
The car park was unusually filled to capacity making some drivers park their vehicles on the curbs.
The upgrade of Kaduna Airport cost the Federal Government about N1.1billion. Giving a breakdown of the cost, Hadi Sirika, minister of State for Aviation, disclosed that Nigerian Railways Corporation would get N100.3million, Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, N237.2 million, and the Police, N358.5 million.
Sirika added that Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, would receive N325 million for its role in the operations.
The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, (NAMA) had upgraded the navigational facilities at the Kaduna Airport, ahead of the closure of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, for repairs on the runway.
Mathew Pwajo, the NAMA general manager, Safety Management Systems/Quality Assurance, explained that the upgrade was to absorb the increased volume of traffic to be diverted from Abuja to Kaduna Airport.
The agency had deployed both equipment and personnel to strategic areas of need and installed a digital Instrument Landing System (ILS) at the Kaduna airport to ensure seamless flow of traffic at the airport during the six-week period.
A mobile control tower was also deployed to the airport to support the old control tower already in use and new generating sets was installed to provide secondary power supply to the navigational aids and cooling system was also installed.
Other facilities provided at the Kaduna Airport include a low level wind shear alerting system, a Performance Based Navigation (PBN) procedures for satellite-based navigation capability.
In the area of personnel, various categories of personnel have been deployed to the airport to complement available manpower in Kaduna throughout the duration of the Abuja Airport closure. Some of them include Aeronautical Information Services (AIS), Communications, Air Traffic Control and Engineering officers.
The quality of service on offer on the Abuja-Kaduna rail network has won over business executives, traders and government officials, many of whom were initially skeptical but are now showing a preference for the train, as against travelling the route by road.
All of the passengers interviewed by BDSUNDAY described the timeliness, orderliness, comfort and security measures on the service as impressive.
However, after all these glamour, rejuvenation and rehabilitation of the Kaduna Airport, concerned stakeholders are beginning to worry that with the reopening of the second busiest airport in Nigeria, the Kaduna Airport may go back to its neglected state, despite the upgrade of facilities at the airport.
To reaffirm this development, ahead of the April 19 date for re-opening of the Abuja Airport, domestic and international airlines have started selling tickets to Abuja as a destination, preparatory to commencement of flight to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Sirika had expressed optimism that the on-going work on the airport’s runway would be completed as scheduled. Specifically, the minister offered to resign if the airport was not re-opened on April 19. This was said to have given the airlines and passengers confidence as booking for Abuja Airport kicked off almost immediately.
Repair work on the Abuja Airport runway project, according to the minister was already over 90percent completed and the contractors had given firm assurance that the April 19th deadline is sacrosanct.
BDSUNDAY’s findings show that since last week, there has been increasing demand from travellers for Abuja as a destination. In fact, bookings for the Federal Capital Territory, obtained by BDSUNDAY showed high demand for Abuja flights.
Kingsley Ezenwa, spokesman for Dana Air, said that the airline started selling ticket to Abuja after the minister’s declaration that the airport would reopen as scheduled.
“We have started selling tickets for Abuja. We started receiving booking demands for Abuja and we have started selling; starting from April 20, a day after the reopening date. We are hoping that government would fulfill their promise and reopen the airport on 19th,” he said.
Also some international airlines have started selling tickets and have notified their Abuja staff currently on leave on their resumption date.
Kingsley Nwokoma, president of foreign airlines association in Nigeria, confirmed that foreign airlines have opened booking for tickets and cargo flights to Abuja have already been booked by some carriers.
Within a space of six weeks, no doubt, several businesses have benefitted immensely from the diversion of flight some of which include the domestic airlines who received influx of passengers from foreign airlines who rejected going to Kaduna.
The train service also had its fair share as not less than 6,000 air travellers tested the 186.5 kilometres Abuja-Kaduna standard gauge train service daily.
The concessionaires which include the businesses set up at Kaduna Airport, shops, boutiques, eateries, Bureau de Change, amongst others are not left out as they have received a major boost in sales.
Now, many stakeholders are worried over what becomes of the Kaduna Airport and the huge investments tailored towards it after April 19- if the airport would be allowed to return to its obscure state pre-rehabilitation.
Their fear is that the N1.1billion invested into the airport would be wasted, if there are no airlines to ply on the Kaduna route, no businesses sprouting at the airport, few passengers to use the ultra-modern train system and most importantly, low revenue emanating from the airport.
As the date of the reopening of Abuja airport is at hand, there are indications that there will be many losers also.
Business operators at the airport, for instance, who thought that a ray of hope had finally dawned on them may begin to experience a decline in sales when Abuja Airport re-opens.
The same situation applies to the train operators who had upgraded services to meet up with the taste of top business men and women; such patronage may also experience a decline.
Domestic airlines which had carried influx of passengers that could have been carried by foreign airlines may see drop in passengers as well.
Foreign airlines have expressed anxiety over the re-opening of Abuja Airport and cannot wait to get their passengers back, who before the re-opening of the Abuja Airport have had to pay an extra N30,000 each to domestic airlines to arrive at Kaduna, before connecting to Abuja.
Hoteliers in Kaduna, who had to employ more staff to cushion effect of the influx of passengers may have to lay off most of them in a bid to meet their operating costs.
As a result of low patronage, the shuttles and cabs may gradually begin to relocate from the airport area in search of greener pastures.
What happens to the additional security staff recruited to man the Kaduna Airport? Will they be laid off when traffic eventually drops at the airport or remain and incur huge expenses in a bid to retain them?
The infrastructures put up at the airport will also need to be maintained and sometimes repaired. If there are no activities to necessitate the usage of these infrastructures, then they may be left to rot away.
The question remains: What hope lies for Kaduna Airport after the re-opening of Abuja airport on April 19? Only time will tell!
IFEOMA OKEKE
