This Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has put off resumption of International Flight in Nigeria till September 5.
This is a week extension from the initial August 28 earlier announced via a tweet on August 17 by Hadi Sirika, the aviation minister.
The new date was disclosed on Thursday as the presidential task force on COVID-19 presented latest updates regarding reactivation of socio-economic activities in the country which had hitherto been paralised by the lockdown and restrictions caused by Coronavirus pandemic.
Recall that, in preparation for the resumption, the NCAA had been churning out guidelines, procedures and obligations that must be observed passengers and airlines as the airways opened for local operations, and international flight resumption is being deliberated.
The Nigerian authority suspended all air travel on March 23 to comply with restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus.
The government says the first four international flights into the country will be arriving in the federal capital, Abuja, and the commercial capital, Lagos, but the origin of the flights have yet to be announced.
Meanwhile, Sirika, said the resumption of international flights was justified after no in-flight infections occurred during the restart of domestic flights on July 8.
Sirika said the resumption of flights comes with protocols to assure the progress made in containing the virus is not comprised at airports.
Nigeria wants passengers to take a coronavirus test before their departure and pay for a second test on their arrival in the country.
The government warned that any travelers who manage to skip the tests will be put on a travel watch list.
The federal government also intends to impose a $3,500 fine on airlines that allow coronavirus patients to board planes.
