The Federal Airports Authority of
Nigeria ( FAAN ), has given British Airways, Turkish Airlines and six other
international airlines March 31st deadline to move into the new international
terminal at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
The Authority said the relocation
of the airlines would enable it commence renovation work at the old terminal.
So far, out of the 13
international airlines operating in Abuja, five have moved into the building
leaving out the eight.
The airlines that have moved are;
Ethiopian Airlines, Air Cote d’Ivoire, ASKY Airlines, Air Peace and Emirate
Airline.
The airlines that are yet to move
are; Turkish Airlines, British Airways, Lufthansa, Africa World Airlines (AWA),
EgyptAir, RwandAir, Air France, and Arik Air.
This was disclosed in Abuja on
Wednesday after Emirate Airline made its debut into the new Terminal by the
Regional Manager, North Central FAAN/Airport Manager NAIA, Mr. Sani Mahmud.
The Boeing 777 aircraft marked
A6-EBJ landed at exactly 3:00pm with 176 passengers and 16 crew members.
Speaking after the aircraft
landed Mahmud said: “One of our biggest operator into Abuja, The Emirate
Airline commenced flight operation into the new International Terminal today.
It arrived with 176 passengers and 16 crew. The aircraft type is Boeing 777.
“We have now five international
airlines operating in the new Terminal out of 13 but we have met with the
remaining airlines and we gave them 31st of this month to move into the new
Terminal that was commissioned by Mr. President on the 20th December, 2018.
“We believe we gave them ample
time for them to have moved into the terminal and the old terminal is due for
renovation.
“So, we have given them till 31st
of this month to move into the new facility and we the management of FAAN will
commence renovation in the old terminal.”
On whether there would be
sanctions if any airline fails to move, he said: “We are confident that they
will move because they have all been given offices and the connectivity is in
place. So they will move.”
On when renovation work would
commence at the old terminal, he said: “We hope that contractors will start as
soon as the airlines move because the renovation work has been budgeted in this
year’s budget.”
He also disclosed that the
Federal Government will come up with a policy on what Terminal C will be used
for.
One of the passengers aboard the
Emirate aircraft was the immediate past Inspector-General of Police, IGP
Ibrahim Idris.
Idris who had been on vacation
after he handed over arrived the country in company of his wife and female
toddler.
He commended the government for
putting up the facility and expressed optimism that the facility will be
maintained.
He said: “It is a dramatic
change. It is a very good facility and I am very happy to see the change. I
will advice passengers to follow the rules and not mess up the place. but I
think it is a good product. Obviously, it cannot be compared to the old
terminal at all. It is a great improvement and it can be compared to other
standard terminals across the world.”
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