TheCable

A total of 43,000 passengers used the Kaduna international airport in 11 days – more than double the 21,000 that used the facility in the first quarter of 2016.

Of the 43,000, some 10,000 passengers took advantage of the free bus shuttle between the Abuja and Kaduna airports.

This is contained in ‎the latest data submitted to the presidency by the committee overseeing the repair, closure and relocation of flights to Kaduna from Nnamdi Azikiwe international airport, Abuja.

‎The Abuja airport runway was closed for operations on March 8, to enable the reconstruction of the entire runway.

The airport originally constructed in 1982 has not had the runway repaired despite the fact that it was built to last no more than 25 years.

‎The reconstruction now in the third week is being handled by Julius Berger Nigeria Limited.‎

Quoting the report submitted to the presidency, a source said the free bus shuttle conveys passengers between Abuja and Kaduna airports, starting at the Abuja airport at 6am, and at the Kaduna airport from 8 am.

“The shuttle takes three hours from airport to airport, and runs every 30 minutes, until the arrival of the last daily flight in Kaduna,” the report read.

“The shuttle is in addition to the federal government’s free train service between Abuja and Kaduna. The two-and-half-hour train service departs Abuja’s Idu Station for Kaduna at 6am, 11:55am and 5:45pm. Mondays to Saturdays; and departs Kaduna’s Rigasa Station for Abuja at 9 am, 2:50pm and 8:40pm.”

According to the report, the federal government’s coordinating committee, comprising senior officials of the ministry of aviation, its parastatals (FAAN, NCAA, NAMA, AIB), and security and emergency agencies (Police, FRSC, DSS, NEMA),  chaired by Hadi Sirika, the ‎minister of state (aviation), meet weekly to review operations, collate statistics, and implement internal and external feedback.

The report also stated that a total of 173 police patrol vehicles, and 2,400 police personnel – drawn from the police mobile force, counter terrorism unit, Special Anti-Robbery Squad, and others were deployed along the Abuja-Kaduna Highway and the Abuja-Kaduna Rail Line.

Equally deployed are 30 Police motorcycles along the rail tracks, two patrol helicopters along the rail and road routes, and 10 armoured personnel carriers (APCs) at strategic points on the routes, including the Airports and train stations.

The source said ‎after the Abuja airport reopens for operations on April 19, upgrade works on the runway will continue for another 18 weeks.

“This second phase of upgrade works on the runway will be carried out at night, with no disruption to flight schedules,” the source said.