The proposed Lekki airport in Lagos would receive expert advice from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), in accordance with its rules and for the sake of safety.
Sam Adurogboye, its general manager of public affairs, said this in an interview.
Additionally, Mr Ope George, the special adviser to the governor of Lagos State on public-private partnerships (PPP), stated that the state was prepared to build a new airport in the Lekki axis.
George said that the Federal Government had given Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu-led administration permission to build the new airport.
He said the project, expected to take off next year, would be constructed on 3,500 hectares of land.
Adurogboye assured that the aviation regulatory body would monitor the project from beginning to end.
“NCAA is not opposed to developmental strides, and the initial approval comes from the Federal Ministry of Aviation, while the NCAA also gives its approval.
“We will also supervise it from beginning to the end and certify it okay before the usage of the airport,” he said.
Adurogboye said building an airport around the axis meant infrastructure development, which was good for the economy, the community and the state where it is situated.
Meanwhile, an aviation expert, retired Group Capt. John Ojikutu, said Lagos deserved a second airport. He, however, said the plan had been on for a long time and wondered why it was taking so long to begin it.
Ojikutu, who is the Secretary of Aviation Round Table (ART), said the state’s plan came to light during the tenure of former Lagos governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola.
Fashola was governor of Lagos State from 2007 to 2015.
Ojikutu said the project was supposed to be going side by side with the Lekki Free Trade Zone and deep seaport.
He added: “I welcomed it at the first mention about 10 years ago and I still do today.
“Lagos actually deserves a second airport, which originally was planned to be sited at Imagbon near Badagry, where the Air Force now located at Ikeja was to be located.
“The bulk of the passengers destined for Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA) live far away in Victoria Island and Lekki.
“I’m sure if statistics of regular passengers at the MMA are to be taken today, the percentage that come from these areas cannot be less than 50 per cent.
” Also, they probably are the major reasons for most flight delays when the load factor of flights is not made early.”
Ojikutu said the building of the airport could be achieved in many ways, but the most promising one that was globally done was concession through the Public-Private Partnership (PPP).
According to him, there are many social needs that will need the type of money required to build an airport, hence the importance of PPP.
The state government had said that the master plan and aeronautical designs of the planned airport were in place.
It said studies were ongoing about strategies, funding and other issues, after which the project would be taken to the marketplace.
The airport, according to the state government, is expected to cater to a minimum of five million people yearly.
It said it would be constructed in partnership with local and foreign investors.