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Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo and Ekiti State Governor, Abiodun Oyebanji at the inspection of Ekiti State Agro-Allied International Cargo Airport on Tuesday.
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo, SAN has said that the Ekiti State Agro-Allied International Cargo Airport, Ado-Ekiti is ready for full commercial operations.
Keyamo, who said the airport was 99.5 per cent completed, affirmed that full commercial operations would soon commence.
He said that the state governor, Biodun Oyebanji, has put a lot of passion and resources since he came to office, describing such as “a testament to his desire for this project. What is left is to ignite all regulatory agencies in aviation to give all the necessary approvals”.
The minister, who arrived in the state via the airport on Monday evening on a “fact-finding mission” on the readiness of the facility, made the disclosure on Tuesday shortly after inspecting its facilities in the company of the state governor and some top government officials.
He said, “I landed here to show the world that it is now safe for landing, which is why Aviation 001 had to land here. It is a testament that I have confidence in the facilities here for public use. Commercial airlines will start coming in anytime now.
“Ekiti Agro Allied International Cargo Airport is 99.5 per cent ready for full commercial operations. I am sure you have seen that we have gone around; the basic requirements for the takeoff of an airport are here: you have the fire station, the tower, navigational equipment already installed, all security equipment in place, and the runway we have here is of international standard.
“You can also see how big the apron is. It can park many 737s with narrow bodies. A lot of narrow bodies can come here and anchor. So, as it is today, Ekiti is ready for the world.”
Oyebanji thanked the minister, the founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Aare Afe Babalola; and President Bola Tinubu for making the dreams of the founding fathers and Ekiti people come to reality with their unwavering support towards the completion of the airport project.
Oyebanji said, “Now that the honourable minister has landed here, it is a stamp of authority that the airport is ready for non-scheduled flight operations. So, anybody who has a chartered flight can fly into this place without any fear. Very soon commercial flight operations would commence.
“It is a dual-purpose airport, and it is going to serve agro-allied products as well as commercial passengers.”
The governor, who described the completion of the airport as part of the numerous gains of continuity, said it spoke to the alignment of vision of his predecessor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, who started the project and that of the current administration.
He said, “The state economy stands to benefit a lot from this project as jobs will be created through agriculture, commerce, and tourism, as well as added value to properties in the area because of the anticipated inflow of traffic in the area.”
The minister later departed the airport shortly after the inspection aboard the aircraft that brought him in on Monday.
