The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) has disclosed that emergency backup systems helped avert a total breakdown of air-to-ground communication following a fire outbreak at Terminal I of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), which disrupted critical air traffic operations and forced a temporary suspension of inbound flights into Lagos.
The Managing Director of NAMA, Farouk Ahmed Umar, said the incident resulted in what he described as a significant loss of communication capability, alongside disruptions to other critical air traffic services, after key infrastructure was destroyed by the blaze.
According to Umar, the fire, which originated in a server room on the first floor of the terminal building, spread vertically and damaged essential communication and navigation systems used for real-time coordination between aircraft and air traffic controllers.
“With the communication systems affected, we had no option but to suspend inbound aircraft into Lagos at the time,” he said, noting that the decision was taken as a precautionary measure to ensure flight safety.
Air-to-ground communication is a core component of aviation safety, enabling continuous interaction between pilots and controllers through Very High Frequency (VHF) radio systems for short-range communication and High Frequency (HF) or satellite systems for long-range operations.
Umar explained that NAMA’s engineering teams swiftly activated contingency measures, deploying backup communication systems sourced from other locations to stabilise operations.
Air traffic controllers were also temporarily relocated to the Fire Tower, a secondary control facility, allowing aerodrome and approach services to resume later that same evening.
The emergency response was further tested when 14 NAMA personnel, including air traffic controllers and engineers, became trapped on the ninth floor of the control tower due to smoke that blocked escape routes. They were eventually rescued using a construction crane as emergency teams worked to contain the fire.
As part of recovery efforts, Umar said civil works are being completed to deploy a mobile control tower to the airfield, which is expected to become fully operational within 48 hours and provide more robust communication capabilities than the interim backup systems currently in use.
Although the terminal building was already scheduled for demolition under a N712 billion reconstruction project, the fire destroyed billions of naira worth of operational equipment.
The incident also completely wiped out the office of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMET), including vital weather monitoring equipment used to support flight operations.
The NAMA chief commended agency personnel who remained at their duty posts during the emergency, describing their actions as courageous and professional.
“Some of them were supposed to run and leave their posts, but they stayed to salvage the situation,” he said.
Umar assured airlines, passengers, and the general public that Nigeria’s airspace remains safe, stressing that the agency has robust systems and professional personnel to manage emergencies.
“We are highly professional and ready to provide air traffic control. Safety remains our top priority,” he said, adding that NAMA is taking steps to strengthen its infrastructure and resilience following the incident.
