‘MKO Abiola Airport will rank among best when completed’

AGAINST the backdrop of opposition’s criticisms of the MKO Abiola International Airport, Ido-Osun in Osun state, the consultant engineer to the state ‎government on the project Wemimo Adebajo, has said that the airport when completed, will rank among airports with the longest runways in Nigeria.

Adebajo, during an inspection tour of facilities at the airport with journalists, stated that the present site of the MKO Abiola Airport was the first place where aviation activities took place in the whole of West Africa.

The consultant, speaking on the kevel of work at the airport noted that government, having spent N2.7 billion out of the revised total N11billion cost of the project, put the level of work done so far at could 25 per cent.

He noted that the West African Frontier Force was lifted from the Ido-Osun aerodrome, the present site of the MKO international Airport project during the world war II, hence the conscious effort by the state to make it the best in Nigeria if not in Africa.

He told journalists that the tour of the facilities became necessary so that journalists would be adequately informed about the magnitude of the work done so far and to be in a position where they could adequately educate members of the public in the light of the hash, but uninformed criticism from the opposition in the state.

According to the consultant, the runway of the airport waiting to be laid with 500 mm asphalt is 3.5 kilometre in length, 12.3 metres
excavated to be re-filled with laterite, adding that both sides of the runway are laid with water pipes, the first of its kind in Nigeria.

He said that with such a feature, the airport will have been equipped with facilities that will make emergency fire fighting readily available near the runway in case of any emergency landing or fire outbreaks.

He noted that though the runway had not been completed, but in case of an emergency, the runway at its present state could be used by any pilot to land an aircraft at the airport.

His words,’’ “ Still more to be done, I believe the airport is good for the state. The main delay right now is a question of funding and the state is seeking ways on how to make it available.