Murtala Muhammed International Airport
(MMIA)[2] (IATA: LOS, ICAO: DNMM) is an
international airport located in Ikeja,
Lagos State, Nigeria, and is the major
airport serving the entire state. The
airport was initially built duringWorld
War II and is named after Murtala
Muhammed, the 4th military ruler of
Nigeria.
History
Lagos Airport in 1969.
International terminal (right)
and Domestic terminal (left).
Ticketing Hall in Domestic
Terminal.
Main Departures Hall in
Domestic Terminal.
The airport at Ikeja near Lagos was built
duringWorld War II. West African
Airways Corporation was formed in 1947
and had its main base at Ikeja. De
Havilland Doves were initially operated
on WAACs Nigerian internal routes and
then West African services.[5] Larger
Douglas Dakotas were added to the
Ikeja-based fleet from 1957.[6]
Originally known as Lagos International
Airport,[7] it was renamed in the mid
1970s, during construction of the new
international terminal, after a former
Nigerian military head of stateMurtala
Muhammed. The international terminal
was modelled after Amsterdam Airport
Schiphol. The new terminal opened
officially on 15 March 1979. It is the
main base for Nigeria's largest airline,
Arik Air.
Murtala Muhammed International Airport
consists of an international and a
domestic terminal, located about one
kilometre from each other. Both
terminals share the same runways. This
domestic terminal used to be the old
Ikeja Airport. International operations
moved to the new international airport
when it was ready while domestic
operations moved to the Ikeja Airport,
which became the domestic airport. The
domestic operations were relocated to
the old Lagos domestic terminal in 2000
after a fire. A new domestic privately
funded terminal known as MMA2 has
been constructed and was commissioned
on 7 April 2007.
During the late 1980s and 1990s, the
international terminal had a reputation
of being a dangerous airport. From 1992
through 2000, the USFederal Aviation
Administration posted warning signs in
all US international airports advising
travelers that security conditions at
Lagos Airport did not meetICAO
minimum standards. In 1993, the FAA
suspended air service between Lagos and
the United States. During this period,
security at LOS continued to be a serious
problem.[8] Travelers arriving in Lagos
were harassed both inside and outside of
the airport terminal by criminals. Airport
staff contributed to its reputation.
Immigration officers required bribes
before stamping passports, while
customs agents demanded payment for
nonexistent fees. In addition, several jet
airplanes were attacked by criminals
who stopped planes taxiing to and from
the terminal and robbed their cargo
holds.
Following Olusegun Obasanjo's
democratic election in 1999, the security
situation at Lagos began to improve.
Airport police instituted a "shoot on
sight" policy for anyone found in the
secure areas around runways and
taxiways, stopping further airplane
robberies. Police secured the inside of
the terminal and the arrival areas
outside. The FAA ended its suspension of
direct flights to Nigeria in 2001 in
recognition of these security
improvements.[citation needed] By
2010, the FAA had granted the airport its
highest safety rating.[8]
In 2010, the airport served 6,273,545
passengers.[9]
Recent years[when?] have seen
substantial improvements at Murtala
Muhammed International Airport.
Malfunctioning and non-operational
infrastructures such as air conditioning
and luggage belts have been repaired.
The entire airport has been cleaned, and
many new restaurants and duty-free
stores have opened. Bilateral Air Services
Agreements signed between Nigeria and
other countries are being revived and
new ones signed. These agreements
have seen the likes of Emirates, Ocean
Air, Delta and China Southern Airlines
express interest and receive landing
rights to Nigeria's largest international
airport.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
Air France Airbus A330-300 and
Emirates Boeing 777-300ER at
Murtala Muhammed
International Airport, July 2013
Airlines Destinations
Aero
Contractors
Abuja, Accra, Asaba, Benin
City, Calabar, Enugu,
Kano, Owerri, Port
Harcourt, Uyo
Air Côte
d'Ivoire Abidjan[10]
Air France Paris–Charles de Gaulle
Air Italy2 Milan–Malpensa
Air Namibia
Accra (begins 29 June
2018),[11] Windhoek-
Hosea Kutako (begins 29
June 2018)[11]
Air Peace
Abuja, Accra, Asaba,
Calabar, Enugu, Kebbi,
Owerri, Port Harcourt
Africa World
Airlines Accra
Arik Air
Abidjan, Abuja, Accra,
Asaba, Banjul, Benin City,
Calabar, Cotonou, Dakar–
Diass, Douala, Enugu,
Freetown, Jos, Kaduna,
Kano, Libreville, Luanda,
Monrovia, Owerri, Port
Harcourt, Uyo, Warri
ASKY Airlines Douala, Libreville, Lomé
Azman Air Abuja, Kano
British
Airways London–Heathrow
Cronos
Airlines Douala
Dana Air Abuja, Accra, Port
Harcourt, Uyo
Delta Air
Lines Atlanta, New York–
JFK[12]
DiscoveryAir
Nigeria Abuja
EgyptAir Cairo
Emirates Dubai–International
Ethiopian
Airlines Addis Ababa
Etihad
Airways Abu Dhabi
First Nation
Airways Abuja, Port Harcourt
Kenya
Airways Nairobi–Jomo Kenyatta
KLM Amsterdam
Lufthansa Frankfurt
Med-View
Airline
Abuja, Accra, Enugu,
Jeddah, Kano, London–
Gatwick, Port Harcourt,
Yola
Middle East
Airlines Abidjan, Beirut
Overland
Airways Asaba, Ibadan, Ilorin
Qatar
Airways Doha
Royal Air
Maroc Casablanca
Rwandair Kigali
South
African
Airways Johannesburg–O.R.
Tambo
Turkish
Airlines Istanbul–Atatürk
Virgin
Atlantic London–Heathrow