We have a total of twenty-two airports in Nigeria managed by Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN). FAAN is the body that regulates airports operations in Nigeria. There are sixteen international airports, out of which four of these International airports are the busiest namely:
Murtala Mohammed International Airport Lagos
Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja
Aminu Kano International Airport Kano
Port Harcourt International Airport Port Harcourt
Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja has four wings namely:
General Aviation Terminal (GAT): Hajj and cargo operation/pilgrimage, aircraft chartering services and private aircraft operations.
Domestic Terminal (terminal B and D): Commercial flight operations locally.
International Wing: Commercial operations between nations.
Presidential Wing: Flight operation for President, Vice-president/wife, Senate President and the speaker House of Representative.
Airport operation is divided into three parts:
The Land Side: The land side comprises of the car hire park, staff car park, the VIP car park, and the general car park.
The Terminal Building: In the terminal building, we have the following halls:
The Ticketing Hall: it’s a hall where passengers buy/purchase their flight ticket.
The Departure Hall: it’s a hall in an airport where passengers wait before getting onto an aircraft.
The Arrival Hall: it’s a hall where incoming passengers arrive.
The Airside: The airside comprises of the tarmac/apron, the taxi-way/yellow line and the run-way/white line.
Apron: Designed area of an aerodrome to accommodate aircraft parking for the purpose of loading paxs, mail, cargo, fuelling and maintenance.
Taxi Way: A part on an airport connecting runways with ramps, hangers, terminals and facilities. Taxiway is usually marked with yellow edge line and a red line in the middle.
Run Way: A defined rectangular area of land of an aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off run of an aircraft.
Aerodrome: A defined area of land or water (including any buildings, installations or equipment) intended to be used either wholly or in part, for the arrival, departure and surface movement of aircraft.
Added to the above, we also have:
Control Tower: Air traffic control
Radar: A system for detection of Aircraft movement, direction, and speed, in a given airspace in the form of a dot.
There are eleven international airlines in Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja which are; British Airways, Air France, Ethiopia Air, Lufthansa, Emirates, Arik, ASKY, Africa World Airways (AWA), Rwanda Air, Air Cote d’ ivore, Egypt Air, Turkish air, Qatar air.
We have a total of ten domestic airlines that operate in Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja.
At the domestic terminal B, we have three airlines namely:
Max Air
Arik Air-line
Azman Airline
At the Domestic Terminal D, there are Seven airlines namely:
Airpeace
Aero Contractors
Dana Air
Ibom Air
United Nigeria
Green Africa
Overland.
There are some organizations in the airport that makes work go smoothly. These organisations are
NAMA (Nigeria Airspace Management Agency): Provides air traffic services and also maintain adequate communication at airports.
NIMET (Nigeria Metrological Agency): Provides weather forecast and reports for safe operation of flights; e.g. briefing of pilots and airmen on expected weather at various points.
FAAN (Federal Airports Authority Nigeria): Body that regulates airports operation in Nigeria.
NCAA (Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority): Responsible for setting aviation standards and approval of training instructions, ensuring that airport operations meet approved global standards by ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation).
Other agencies involved in daily airport operations are:
Customs: Guard against importation of contra-band goods and collection of duties on imported good.
Immigration: Deals with travel documents of passengers. E.g. passport, Visa, tickets, etc.
NDLEA: Guard against drug trafficking/smuggling.
Port-Health: Airport user health safety and prevention of external diseases/sickness.
Security Agencies: Aviation security (AVSEC), DSS
Quarantine: Guard against food, pets and plant importation/exportation.