Following the closure of Nnamdi Azikiwe airport for maintenance purposes, the federal government, FG, through the National Security Adviser, Babagana Munguno, has banned any form of helicopter shuttle service from Kaduna to Abuja but is it a bold move, looking at the current state of things in the aviation sector?
For a very long time now, lots of Nigerians have opted for travelling by air for a lot of reasons, which has made the aviation sector one of the most important sectors in the country a well as financially buoyant.
While this sector is faced with lots of issues for a very long time now, the society and the government have shown little or no interest at all in making it one of the best in the world.
In December 2016, President Muhammadu Buhari through the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, proposed to the Senate, the close down of the airport for six weeks, starting from March 8th, 2017 in order to enable the reconstruction of its terribly damaged runways which put thousands of lives at risk.
As expected, the Federal Government suggested that all traffic from the airport be directed to Kaduna airport while the reconstruction is ongoing.
Now remember, Kaduna is only an alternative rout to all passengers going to Abuja, thus, they still have to spend more than an hour if travelling by road before getting to Abuja.
Aside from the comfort that comes with boarding a flight, there is no doubt that most Nigerians travel across the country and round the world basically for business purposes.
This brings the current situation of things in the aviation sector as far as such passengers concerned given the fact that the federal government has just banned helicopter shuttle service from Kaduna to Abuja pending when the entire maintenance process is over.
“In view of the closure of the airport, air travelers will be required to travel by road/train to Abuja from Kaduna International Airport. This will undoubtedly cause constraints on the movement of some passengers who will aim to travel using other means, notably the use of commercial ferry helicopters.
“Please be reminded that the airspace over the Federal Capital Territory Abuja is controlled and only security flights or those with the requisite security clearance from the Presidency are granted overhead clearance for obvious security reasons. Consequently, you are to note and ensure that no charter or commercial helicopter ferry flights are allowed to fly within Abuja airspace,” Mungunosaid.
While it is understandable that the issue of security should be treated with all attention, won’t there be other ways of having security measures being put in place for the next 3 three months of these repairs without placing a ban on helicopter services as this will not only affect Nigerians with their various business schedules but will also leave them open to all the dangers on the Nigerians highways such as robbery, accidents and more.
May be the FG should consider other options therein rather than banning such a helpful service because nothing should matter to any government than the safety of its people.
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