Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Barr. Festus Keyamo on Thursday said the Nigeria Air and airport concession deals of his immediate predecessor, have been suspended.
Kayemo made this known during his first official visit to Murtala Muhammed International Airport Lagos where he had a tour of facilities.
The minister also directed that all airlines operating at the old international terminal of the airport are given until October 1, 2023 to relocate their operations to the newly constructed terminal.
The new constructed by Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCEEC), is one of the international airport terminals projects undertook by the Federal government with loans from the government of China.
However, since its commissioning in 2022, by former President Muhammadu Buhari, the terminal with state-of- the – art facilities, has been abandoned by some foreign airlines operatiing at the airport over the claim that the apron of the terminal does not have enough space to operate their wide body aircraft.
To ensure that the relocation of operations of airlines to the new terminal is carried out, Keyamo said the old terminal would be temporarily shut down for total and comprehensive overhaul.
Keyamo who expressed concerns over the poor design and implementation of a project like the terminal at a major gateway airport without giving consideration for construction of apron on which big airplanes can manouver seamlessly, however said the two private hangars that may likely obstructing the expansion of the apron will have to be relocated.
“The question from Nigerians is that why an international airport like Lagos airport will be designed without a provision to take the big planes. No aviobridges that can link big aircraft to the new terminal and 60 percent of the revenue generated from aviation are made from the Lagos airport.
“What we are going to do is temporarily shut down the old terminal for total and Comprehensive overhaul.
“I have also given the directives that all pending projects like the airport concession including Nigeria Air be suspended until I brief the President whom I owe absolute honesty and Nigerians.”
To address the temporary hitches the closure of the old terminal and the relocation of airline operations to the new terminal may cause passengers, the minister said buses will be provided to convey passengers between aircraft and the new terminal.
“How they designed an international gateway airport like Lagos airport without provisions for wide-body planes is what Nigerians are asking questions about.”
The minister who was led on the tour by the Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mr Kabir Muhammed and his management team also called on owners of all unserviceable aircraft abandoned at the domestic wing of the Lagos Airport to remove their aircraft within three months.
