Local flights have returned to the Nigerian airspace with higher fares and mandatory compliance to safety guidelines by officials and passengers.
An economy class seat on Lagos -Abuja and Abuja -Lagos route – the only one that operated on Wednesday, went for between N29, 000 and N33,000.
Passengers paid between N21,000 and N25,000 for such seat pre-COVID 19.
Besides paying more, passengers contended with stricter check -in measures at the terminal buildings. The measures include mandatory checking of body temperature , disinfection of luggage, physical distancing during check-in procedure and others rolled out for flights by aviation authorities.
Arik Air, Air Peace, Max Air and Ibom Air Air operated flights out of the two domestic wings – General Aviation Terminal (GAT) and Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal Two (MMA2) of the airport in Lagos.
The first flight to Abuja from Lagos was operated by Arik Air. The flight took off at about 7.15 am with boarding supervised by Officials of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
Nigeria’s oldest carrier- AeroContractors- and Dana, which did not commence flights along with Arik Air, Air Peace, Max Air and Ibom Air Air, said they would today.
Officials of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) also monitored compliance with the COVID-19 flight guidelines.
Speaking to reporters in Abuja after inspecting adherence to the measures, FAAN Managing Director Rabiu Yadudu commended passengers for their behaviour.
He said: “The situation is looking very good just like we expected. It took a lot of planning and efforts from all sides; the airlines, the handlers, agencies, stakeholders and of course FAAN is the primary agent responsible in this facility.
“A lot of work has gone and right now we are here, operations are going on very smoothly and we do not foresee any issue either major or minor.”
On the capacity of passengers each airline is expected to carry to observe the physical distancing , Yadudu said: “It is not an issue of percentage or capacity. We are monitoring and they are doing enough spacing to ensure that the regulations are followed.
“We want to make sure that all stakeholders, and not just airlines, operate at maximum capacity provided there is no violation of the regulations because of capacity changes.”
He also explained that there was no issue with passengers’ compliance with the COVID-19 protocols.
He said: ”There were no issues with the passengers. We were worried about the planning we put into this because it is only a plan.
“We thought implementation was going to be really difficult because we could not predict passengers’ response. But I must say that the cooperation has been very tremendous and we really appreciate it.”
Yadudu also hinted that the use of robots and other special measures at the airport would be gradual.
“The robots did not come on the first day of resumption, we want to do it based on practical scanners on the ground,” he added.
FAAN’S Director of Operation Muktar Muye and his Security Services counterpart, Group Captain Sadique Usman (rtd), who monitored flights out of Lagos, said passenger turnout was appreciable.
They also applauded the conduct of passengers with the protocols put in place at the terminals.
Director, Airspace and Aerodromes Standards, NCAA, Mr.. Tayib Odunowo, who flew on Arik’s first flight out of Lagos, commended the procedures and expressed joy that the work put in to achieve the restart of domestic flights paid off.
Some passengers at the Lagos and Abuja airports said they were pleased with the efforts put in place to ensure their safety.
