Tag: airport closure

Members of the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), has threatened to withdraw their services at Kaduna airport should the Federal Government failed to prioritise their welfare.

NUATE’s General Secretary, Mr Olayinka Abioye, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja that government had not said anything about the staff of workers that would be deployed.

He alleged that NUATE members in various aviation parastatals under the Ministry of Transportation, who had been engaged in ad hoc assignments in the past, had not been fairly treated in term of welfare.

He added that the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), currently owed their members millions of naira in allowances.

According to him, if we are relocating operation to Kaduna, what are the critical elements that will be involved in this operation? It is the workers.

“Now, in 2016, we were being told that the Abuja airport will be closed for six weeks by March 8.

“The government, through the parastatls, have not said anything about the staff welfare, in all the discussions that have been going on.

“We have been talking about this and our position as a labour movement is that the government must come out to tell us specifically what it has in stock for the workers.

“We believe in the growth of the industry, we believe in this operation and have also aligned ourselves that truly Abuja airport is due for comprehensive rehabilitation.

“As I speak with you, in NAMA, FAAN and NCAA, there are millions of naira that are being owed these esteemed members of staff in these organisations.

“If at the end of February nothing concrete is shown to the workers that they are going to get paid before they embark on that journey, we will ask our people to withdraw their services,’’ he said.

NUATE Scribe said that the unions were not involved in all the discussions on how the operation in Kaduna would succeed during the six weeks.

He added that Kaduna airport lacked the required manpower for the operation, which according to him, makes it imperative that staff would be moved from Abuja airport.

Another executive of the union in Abuja Airport, who pleaded anonymity, told NAN that some of the members of staff that would be deployed for the operation were strangers to Kaduna.

He added that considering the bad security situation in the state, workers that would be moved from Abuja to boost the operation needed to be adequately mobilised.

The official told NAN that the union has had experience where its members were deployed for such emergency operation and were not taken care of.

He alleged that during the closure of Port Harcourt airport for one and half year, members of staff that were deployed to Owerri airport were denied their entitlements.

“We are not ready to go to Kaduna and suffer because from the budget for the six weeks operation, no provision was made for airport staff.

“What we want is that whatever is due to us should be paid before we can go to Kaduna because we are not comfortable with the attitude of the management of our parastatals,’’ he said.

Meanwhile, Mrs Henrietta Yakubu, FAAN’s Acting General Manager, Corporate Affairs, in her response, assured workers that adequate arrangement had been made for the staff welfare during the period.

Yakubu said that FAAN was not unaware that the workers were going to outstation, adding that the authority would not move any of its staff out of his or her station without being paid allowances.

According to her, even though there is no provision for them in the government’s budget, it is the responsibility of the agencies to take care of their workers.

“If they have been short changed in the past, I can assure you that it will not happen this time around, especially with the public awareness in this case,’’ she said.

THE Federal Government has said it will ensure that road, rail and the airspace between Abuja and Kaduna are secured tightly during the six-week closure of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja for runway repairs.

During the closure between March 8 to April 18, Kaduna airport will be used for passenger operation.

Minister of State for Aviation Hadi Sirika gave the assurance yesterday when he inaugurated the security sub-committee for movement of passengers between Abuja and Kaduna during the closure.

Sirika urged the committee to provide security for passengers and cargo during the period.

He said the composition of the committee was necessitated by the fact that the expected volume of traffic in Abuja airport would be diverted to Kaduna.

The minister urged the committee to ensure that security should be water-tight for the massive movement of passengers, cargoes and other logistics to and from Kaduna.

“Safeguarding lifes and property of our citizens is a constitutional responsibility of the government.

“The major function of this important committee as it were is to provide security at the Abuja and Kaduna airports, including air and rail transportation and of course, on the road.

“It is to also monitor traffic movement from Abuja to Kaduna airport and vice versa inclusive of the road that links the two junctions in Kaduna up to the airport.

“Your task is to be proactive and deal with any security challenge,” he said.

The committee, according to Sirika, will be chaired by Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Federal Operations Alkali Usman.

Director Technical and Safety, Ministry of Transportation Mr. Talba Alkali will serve as the secretary.

The members include Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA); Office of the Minister of State for Aviation; Department of State Services (DSS) and Nigerian Air Force.

Others are: the Nigerian Army; Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corp (NSCDC); Nigeria Customs Service (NCS); Nigeria Immigration Service, Aviation Security of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (AVSEC) and others.

AVIATION stakeholders and others have raised concerns about the proposed closure of Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja runway for six weeks.

The Federal Government announced that the airport would be closed for six weeks, between March 8 and April 19, to enable it fix the dilapidated runway.

The runway, which was designed in 1982, was expected to last for 20 years. But it has lasted for 34 years, a scenario the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, described as risky.

Stakeholders at a meeting in Abuja yesterday, however, expressed their doubts and suggested alternative to closing the airport and the use of Kaduna International Airport during the period.

Speaking at the meeting, Sirika said: “I know that it is unimaginable that we will want to close Abuja airport to traffic for such a long time. But we have to because the situation has reduced the riding quality and safety in operation. The continued deterioration of the facility will eventually make operation unsafe.

“This action will affect travellers, airport users, airline operators, travel agents, hoteliers, car hire services and others.

“We are only trying to be proactive to avoid what happened in Port Harcourt. If it had been just the surface, we might not close it and will be working at night; and for a long time, we will achieve a very good result. Unfortunately for us, it is the entire structure of the runway that has failed.

“The structure of the runway through the bottom – all the four levels – are gone; completely dilapidated. They open up without giving notice. We will be working for six months like they do in Gatwick. But within the six months, we will close for six weeks to be able to attend to the centre part of that runway.

“If we fail to close the runway now, it will eventually shut down itself. We want to take advantage of the dry season to fix it.”

Sirika added that the airport will be closed by midnight on March 8 and will be reopened for operation on April 19 or before.

Stakeholders from Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), International Airline Operators (IAO), embassies, travel agencies and other stakeholders, who were present at the meeting, expressed their fears and concerns.

According to Captain Nogie Meggison of AON, operators were in total support of the government on rehabilitation of the airport, but they have their reservations.

He said: “AON is of the view that the runway should be repaired at night from 6pm to 6am as it was done in other airports, such as Gatwick.”

He suggested that since the runway is about 3900 metres, it should be split into two parts instead of the proposed total closure.

On his part, Mr. Osho Joseph of (IAO) said: “We are supposed to learn from past experiences. We ought not to have waited till 34 years before attempting to fix what was meant to last for only 20 years.

Joseph said: “We believe that Kaduna might be for local operators and not international flight. What arrangements have been made with fuel marketers in terms of assistance? Why not start in February instead of March since we are taking advantage of the dry season?”

Maria Careayo from British High Commission, who spoke on behalf of embassies, sought to know the number of international airlines that fly from Kaduna presently.

She asked whether roadblocks that are presently on Kaduna road would be removed and whether more men would be placed in strategic locations between Abuja and Kaduna.

The embassies, while asking if independent travellers would encounter any form of hiccups, allayed fears that some embassies would close offices during the period that the airport would be shut.

She said: “Our embassy is in support of the rehabilitation of the airport runway by the government. We believe it is part of safety precaution and it is better done now than later.”

But travel agents were concerned about the cost of trip and how it would affect economic activities.

They believed that taking passengers to Kaduna instead of their destination, which is Abuja, would increase the cost of fare. They also suggested that before government goes into full operation for six weeks, it should do a trial operation.

The minister said the suggestion made by AON could be adopted if it was only the surface that needs repairs.

But in the case of the Abuja runway, Sirika explained that the closure would help workers fix the centre of the runway.

He said before the start of flight operation in Kaduna, stakeholders would be invited to inspect the airport and roads prior to movement on March 8.

On the availability of fuel, Sirika promised that fuel would be available.

On the number of international flights that were coming in and out of Kaduna, he said: “Kaduna is categorised as a seasonal international airport, most of it, we do it during the Hajj operations with big capacity, multiple aisle, big carriers. So, Kaduna has the capacity to take Jumbo jets, Triple 7s in and out with very secured, safe and smooth operations.”

He noted that the government’s decision was not final, adding that it was opened to more suggestions.

The minister, who admitted that Kwara, Niger and Plateau states were alternate airport, said the government decided to settle for Kaduna for few reasons.

Some stakeholders believed that the government settled for Kaduna because the terminal has the capacity to take about 500 passengers and because it could take jumbo jet.

Also, the presence of NAF runway in Kaduna State was considered before the decision was reached, the minister said.

The Executive Secretary of Kaduna Investment Agency, Gambo Hamza, said the government would deliver on what was expected of it by the end of January.

The state government is expected to fix the road and deploy security men to strategic places within the state during the period.