Abuja airport reopened hours after runway mishap

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has announced the reopening of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja after it was temporarily closed Wednesday night.

The closure followed an incident involving a Gulfstream four aircraft operated by Skybird.

Henrietta Yakubu, general manager, corporate affairs, FAAN, said the aircraft overshot the runway while landing and consequently got stuck on the runway end safety area (RESA).

Yakubu said FAAN had reopened the runway to take arrivals and departures, subject to a reduced threshold of 3000 metres.

She assured airlines and passengers that the airport was safe for normal operations, adding that FAAN was committed to its core values of safety, security and comfort.

“This is following the partial closure of Runway 22, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, at about 2200hours, on Wednesday night,” Yakubu said in a statement.

“The closure was due to an incident involving a Gulfstream four aircraft being operated by Skybird that overshot the runway while landing and consequently got stuck on the Runway End Safety Area (RESA).”