Bauchi airport opens for business; pilgrims airlifted

Bauchi airport opens for business; pilgrims airlifted

Sunday, September 21, 2014 3:35 pm


Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Airport: opens for business

Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Airport: opens for business

The Abubakar Tafawa Balewa International Airport in Bauchi, north east Nigeria, has opened for business.

Fittingly, the first official flight out of the airport was dedicated to muslim pilgrims, going to Saudi Arabia. The first flight took off at 12.11 p.m.

The Deputy Governor of Bauchi State, Alhaji Sagir Saleh on Sunday, said 530 intending pilgrims in the state had left for Saudi Arabia via the new airport.

In his farewell message to the pilgrims, Saleh said the government had wanted to start transporting pilgrims from the airport since in 2013.

He said the plan was truncated by some challenges until it was fully completed and certified for use.

He said the construction took four years to complete. It cost N7.9 billion, according to earlier figures by government.

“With 3.4 kilometres runway, the airport has a capacity to accommodate five Boeing 747 aircraft at a time,’’ he said.

The deputy governor urged the intending pilgrims to be good ambassadors of the state and the country.

Earlier, the Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rilwanu Sulaiman, said the pilgrims would pray for peace and the security of the country.

He said the team he would lead to the holy land would do everything possible to ensure that the state pilgrims were safe.

The Commissioner for Religious Affairs in the state, Alhaji Ahmed Barau, said six aircraft were scheduled to transport the 2, 296 pilgrims who were expected to travel to the holy land through the airport in 2014.

He said that those to be airlifted would include the medical team and other officials of the state’s Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board.


Join The Conversation

What do you think?

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.