COVID-19 Shutdown: Cargo Plane Refused Landing at Lagos Airport

Matilda Omonaiye/

A cargo aircraft belonging to DHL was refused clearance to land at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos this afternoon.

NewsmakersNG learnt that the plane had requested permission to land at the airport around 3pm but was denied by air traffic control.

It reportedly hovered in the air for about 30 minutes before departing the nation’s airspace.

The federal government shut the nation’s two main international airports, MMIA and the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja, on Monday after the number of coronavirus cases in the country almost doubled.

Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority said the closure will last one month in the first instance.

Earlier, the government had closed the other three international airports in Port Harcourt, Kano and Enugu.

The minister of aviation in a statement annoucing the closure said exemption would only be made for cargo planes carrying relief or essential materials and flights on humanitarian mission. He however said such aircrafts must secure prior approval from his office.