MMIA Fire Incident Exposes Safety Gaps, Says NATCA

The Nigerian Air Traffic Controllers’ Association (NATCA) has praised aviation authorities and air traffic personnel for what it described as exceptional professionalism and resilience during the recent fire incident at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, which briefly disrupted flight operations.

In a statement signed by its President, Mr. Edino Amos, the association confirmed that the incident led to a temporary closure of Nigerian airspace as a precautionary safety measure.

Air Traffic Controllers of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency working from the control tower were safely evacuated from the ninth floor using a crane in a coordinated rescue operation.

Following established contingency procedures, operations were swiftly relocated to the Fire Tower, while engineers redeployed critical communication equipment, enabling flight services to resume within the hour.

NATCA commended the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development,

Festus Keyamo for what it called hands-on leadership, noting that he flew into Lagos immediately after the airspace was reopened to assess the situation first hand.

The association also applauded the management of NAMA for decisive crisis management, as well as the Directorate of Air Traffic Services for coordinating inbound flight holds, rerouting aircraft where necessary, and ensuring an orderly restoration of operations.