Why operations were disrupted at Lagos airport

Flight operations were on Wednesday evening disrupted at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos following a power outage.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the outage occurred at about 6.05 p.m., and lasted for over an hour before it was restored.

The situation placed the nation’s busiest airport in total darkness, leaving airline officials, passengers and other airport users frustrated as they could not proceed with the boarding processes.

An official of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), told NAN on condition of anonymity that the outage was caused by disruptions from the Ayobo and Ikeja Transmission Lines which supplies power to the facility.

“What happened was that there was intermittent disruption of power supply and it was unstable during the period it lasted but it was eventually restored,” the source said.

The General Manager, Corporate Affairs, FAAN, Mrs Herrientta Yakubu, who confirmed the development, said power had been restored to the airport.

An aviation expert, Capt. John Ojikutu, decried the ugly development, saying as a Category 1 airport, the MMIA ought to have independent power supply, especially in case of emergencies.

“FAAN is expected to have independent power line from Ikeja and Ayobo transmission lines as planned for MMIA in 2007; what has happened to that proposal?

“This is a shame on all of us including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

“Again, how did NCAA certify the MMA if the power problem that could affect the airport safety facilities has not been resolved?

”We have a long way to go with the NCAA safety oversight functions,” he said. (NAN)