Dutse Airport not a wasteful venture-Jigawa State
The Jigawa State government has dismissed the notion that the establishment of the Dutse International airport is a wasteful venture, declaring that contrary to this, that the existence of the airport had brought development and helped in decongesting the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport during the annual hajj exercise which has also given Borno and Yobe States alternatives during the insurgency of Boko Haram.
Though at present, commercial flight operations into the airport is zero since the only domestic airline that used to operate there, Overland Airways has stopped flights to the airport, nevertheless, the General Manager of the airport, Alhaji Yunusa Abubakar Umar has described facilities at the airport as one of the best and of standard.
The airport was purposely built by the then Lamido government not only to open up the state to other parts of the world through seamless transportation,
but to make trade and other businesses including movement of farm products more convenient is presently dormant.
While describing the absence of flight operations to the airport as its only challenge, Umar said that chartered flights however operate into the airport.
The Sule Lamido led government had in 2014 signed a memorandum of understanding with Overland Airways to operate commercial flights into the airport thus making it the only airline that had ventured into the airport for two years.
Speaking on why Overland Airways stopped operations to the airport, the Acting General Manager declared: “lack of passengers and poor patronage made the airline abandoned the airport. After the expiration of the MoU between Jigawa State government and Overland Airways, the company recorded loss forcing it to cancel operations to Dutse airport.
“Presently, there is no any commercial flight operating to our airport. It is only charter flights that have been coming to the airport since the Overland contract with the state government expired.”
Umar, while advising the government to ensure the initial purpose of making the airport a cargo airport was achieved, added: “It could be a very good opportunity for the state and famers of the region in line with the present administration’s policy of diversification and desire for improved farming activities and promotion of export”
It would be recalled that many of the state airports, particularly the new ones have come under scathing criticisms because of sheer waste of resources as many of them hardly record up to 100 flights annually.
These states initially started their airport projects with so much vigour. But as time passed, the same enthusiasm is paling into what may appear as abandoned airport projects. When completed, these investments may not significantly improve their economies.
These airports especially, especially Lagos and Abuja feed all the over 29 airports because of their un-viability with many of them not generating enough revenues to keep them operational.
