First Int’l Flight Lands In Southeast Nigeria

In what is the first in the history of Southeast Nigeria, the region witnessed the first international flight through the rehabilitated Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu.
The region, which has noticeably suffered marginalization from successive national governments, before now, remained the only region in the six-region nation to be bereft of an international airport.

But on Sunday, the first international commercial flight belonging to Air Peace with No. 5N-BUV’ landed at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport on Sunday ahead of the official re-opening of the airport later today.
The flight which landed at the airport at about 1.40 pm on Sunday conveyed former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chris Ngige, Director General of Voice of Nigeria (VON) Osita Okechukwu among other National Assembly members. 

Speaking to journalists immediately the flight landed, Okechukwu described the reopening of the airport as historic, calling for licensing of more international airlines to be using the airport.
He commended the Federal Government for making good its promise of rehabilitating the airport.
He said: “Efforts should be made for the newly rehabilitated Enugu International Airport to be using more international airlines and not only Ethiopian airlines.
“We also need more runways and more international flight at the airport for further development of the airport to attract more investors for the development of the state,” he said.

It was reported that the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, took the first private jet 5N-PAZ, to the airport on Saturday, August 29, alongside Prince Arthur Eze and other government officials in preparation for the reopening of the airport.
It could be recalled that Akanu Ibiam International Airport Enugu was shut down in August 2019 to enable the Federal Government to reconstruct the runway which aviation experts had hitherto described dilapidated as an accident waiting to happen.