Nigeria’s Abuja Airport reopened on Tuesday as six weeks of runway repairs were completed and operations resumed with an Ethiopian Airlines flight.
Nnamdi Azikiwe airport in Nigeria’s capital has been closed since March 8, but reopened a day early as the runway reconstruction was completed ahead of schedule, the government said.
During the closure, flights used Kaduna Airport, but many international carriers including British Airways and Lufthansa refused to use the smaller airport, located over 150 km (100 miles) away.
International carriers continued to use the international airport in the country’s commercial hub Lagos while Abuja was closed.
Some work had been carried out overnight prior to March 8, but the runway had to be closed completely to complete the resurfacing.
