The Minister of Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, says there is no going back on the Sept. 5, 2020 date for resumption of international flights as all preparations have been completed.
Speaking at the daily briefing of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 in Abuja on Thursday, Sirika said all aviation preparations and COVID-19 protocols had been perfected and the airport was set for reopening.
The minister also revealed that Air France, Lufthansa, Etihad, Air Rwanda, Air Namibia, among others, were banned from coming into the country.
He, however, said that British Airways, Delta, Emirates, Qatar, Middle East, Turkish, Egypt Air, Ethiopian Airlines, Virgin Atlantic were among the airlines approved for operations with appropriate COVID-19 protocols.
Sirika further noted that intending passengers must register online, pay for COVID-19 test fee and upload the COVID-19 negative result not older than 72 hours before boarding.
While warning against sharp practices, he said any airline caught with passengers without COVID-19 negative result would be fined $3500 for each passenger and the passenger returned if he or she was a foreigner.
Giving more insights into the reasons for ban and the principle of reciprocity being applied to some countries, the minister said Nigeria was simply following what each country had done to the country.
