Minister of Aviation and Aerospace, Festus Keyamo has issued a directive prohibiting international flights from operating at non-international airports.
According to an insider cited by The Cable, the move aims to prevent VIPs from bypassing immigration and customs checks by flying into non-international airports, which lack the necessary scrutiny.
The directive seeks to ensure that all international flights adhere to standard protocols and regulations by only operating at designated international airports.
“Many VIPs have devised a way of asking for last-minute permissions to land at local airports, even claiming they have made arrangements for a customs or immigration officer to clear them on arrival,” the source said.
The suspicion is that many of them might be smuggling cash, goods and arms,and possible human beings, into Nigeria away from the prying eyes of security agencies at the officially designated international airports.
“This has been going on for a while and nobody has called them to order. The minister has decided to act decisively,”
A circular to that effect, dated July 17, 2024, has been issued by the directorate of air traffic services of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA).
S.E. Inegbedion, the deputy general manager who signed the circular, informed all stations of the ministerial directive that starting immediately, no international flight operations should be conducted through non-international airports.
The minister also directed that all international flight operations at general aviation terminals (GAT) and other private terminals at the international airports “must complete clearances/checks at international terminals, except those exempted by the national security adviser (NSA)”.
Inegbedion said compliance was “compulsory” and any violation will attract “appropriate sanctions” – although it is unclear what that might be.
