The Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja runway has been reopened and received two aircrafts on the same day. The airport had been undergoing expansion work.
The federal government of Nigeria confirmed the reports and said that normal business activities commenced at the Abuja airport after six weeks of rehabilitation.
The Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika and Ethiopian Airlines landed at the newly reconstructed runway. Sirika who landed first on the runway from Kaduna Airport on an aircraft appealed to Nigerians not to celebrate the reopening of the airport runway because the April 19 deadline was just a target that the aviation ministry set for itself and met.
The runway has been completed and it is in perfect shape, the final exercises including the friction test was carried out this morning and it was concluded that it meets the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) Standard and Recommended Practices (SARPs).
President Muhammadu Buhari also commended the efforts of all stakeholders on the successful completion of work and the reopening of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, 24 hours ahead of the time limit.
He further thanked Ethiopian Airlines for cooperating with the Nigerian government during the period of the closure of Abuja airport, describing it as a good example of intra-African cooperation.
The Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja runway was contracted by Julius Berger. Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport serves Abuja, in the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria. It the main airport serving the Nigerian capital city and was named after Nigeria’s first President, Nnamdi Azikiwe. The airport is approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) west of Abuja, and has an international and a domestic terminal that share its single runway.
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has its head office on the airport grounds. The Abuja non-directional beacon is 1.7 nautical miles (3.1 km) off the threshold of Runway 22. The Abuja VOR-DME is 1.3 nautical miles (2.4 km) off the same runway.
Extract from constructionreviewonline.com