FAAN Shuts Lagos Airport’s Runway Temporarily for Rehabilitation

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has announced the temporary closure of Runway 18R/36L at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos for rehabilitation work. In a statement issued on Sunday, Obiageli Orah, FAAN’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, said the closure will take effect from 03:00 hours on March 3, 2025, to 23:59 hours on March 4, 2025.

According to the statement, the temporary shutdown is necessary for the asphalt rehabilitation of the A2 Taxiway-link to ensure that the runway remains in optimal condition. She assured the public that flight operations would not be disrupted, as all flights would be redirected to the alternative Runway 18L/36R during the period.

This development comes weeks after FAAN’s Managing Director, Olubunmi Kuku, revealed that ₦580 billion is required to fix deteriorating runways across Nigerian airports. Kuku emphasised that many runways have exceeded their lifespan and require urgent reconstruction. She pointed out that the runway upgrade she spoke about was for over 17 runways across Nigeria.

And it’s not just the runways. It includes the runways, perimeter roads, and fencing. So, I’ve seen some commentary where people are saying, what do they need all of this money for? I encourage you, please just look at Google if you’re in the construction business or in the aviation business to try and understand what it means to build runways, taxiway links, apron expansion work that we need to do, and of course, to make sure that we put a safe environment together for everything that happens on the air side, Kuku said.