Again, bad weather disrupts flight operations in Kano

• We have made progress with Nigeria Air project, says FAAN MD

Local and international airlines at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) in Kano were compelled to reschedule their flight operations in the last 48 hours due to bad weather.

Following the adverse weather conditions, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has predicted that the present atmospheric dust or haze may reduce horizontal visibility to below the minimum.

The Guardian learned that the present condition has reduced visibility below the minimum navigation standard for take-off and landing of aircraft.

A staff of a local airline told The Guardian that the return of dusty harmattan has left passengers stranded at the airport due to flights rescheduling and sometimes, outright cancellation in the last three days.

He said worse the affected passengers are those bound for Kano-Lagos, Kano-Abuja and Kano-Owerri routes as well as return flights from those destinations to Kano.

“Apart from Azman Air and Max Air that left Kano for Abuja as early as 7am this morning, and Aero Contractors that landed in Kano by 7am, all other flights have been rescheduled due to adverse weather.

“As of yesterday, Egypt Air that landed could not fly again, while Ethiopian Airline came but could not land after several attempts due to poor visibility. As you can see, passengers were left with no option than to with till evening time, with the hope of clear weather in the night,” he said.

A passenger traveling to Lagos said his flight was rescheduled from 11 am on Tuesday to 12am due to bad wealth.

Acting Head, North West Zone of NiMET, Rotimi Adenubi said the present condition was occasioned by the heavy wind emanating from Europe through the Sahara desert to the Northern part of the country.

Meanwhile, Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Captain Sordiq Abubakar yesterday assured that the Federal Government has made substantial progress in the execution of the National Air Carrier project.

Insisting, however, that he would not disclose the new time frame for the commencement of the project, he said the Federal Government approved N47b as viability fund for the takeoff of the National Carrier last year, but stakeholders have continued to raise concerns over the delay in the commencement of the project.

But while speaking on the sidelines of the 7th edition of the Aviation Workers Week yesterday in Abuja, Abubakar disclosed that the Ministry of Aviation was on target on the timeline for the commencement of the project.

Lamenting inability of Nigerian pilots to get employment, Abubakar noted that the Nigerian Air was a veritable platform that would create employment for young pilots.

Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, who was represented by Director of Planning and Statistics, Mohammed Shehu, also assured that the ministry was on course with the Nigeria Air project, attributing the delay in its commencement to some internal mechanisms that needed to be addressed.