Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport , also known as Imo State Airport, serves Owerri, the capital city of Imo State in southeastern Nigeria. It is located in Ngor Okpala Local Government Area, Imo State.
The building of the airport commenced with the administration of the first civilian governor of the old Imo State (now, Imo, Abia and Southern Ebonyi states), Dee Sam Mbakwe, in 1983, from generous contributions of the indigenes and people of the state and throughout the Igbo land. While this is the first state-owned airport, it is the first community-driven airport project ever known, at least, in the West of Africa.
The project also enjoyed immense support from successive Federal Military Governments especially under Navy Captain James N.J. Aneke, who saw to its completion, commissioning and operational commencement on 15 July 1994, under the late General Sani Abacha.
Other cities served by the airport are the commercial city of Onitsha, the automobile and manufacturing city of Nnewi in Anambra State, the industrial hub of Aba, Umuahia and Arochukwu in Abia State. Others are Okigwe, Oguta, and Orlu business districts in Imo State. The airport also serves some parts of Akwa Ibom and Cross River States in the South South (southernmost part) of Nigeria.
The airport is named after Sam Mbakwe, the first civilian governor of Imo State who started the project. As mentioned, it is the first state-government-built airport built from the support and contributions of indigenes of the state and the entire Igbo land. Navy Captain James N.J. Aneke, who was the military administrator of Imo State from 9 December 1993 to 22 August 1996, completed and commissioned the airport on 15 July 1994. It was later handed over to FAAN (Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria) to be managed by the federal government.
Facilities
The airport underwent upgrading in 2013-14 that covered its infrastructure and the communication equipment covering the airspace past Port Harcourt Airport as part of the Total Radar Coverage of Nigeria (TRACON) project.
The airport has night landing capabilities, but for most flights in non-international designated airports, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria restricts night operations except for passenger flights during pilgrimage (Hajj).
Airlines and destinations
Statistics These data show the number of passengers' movements into the airport, according to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria's Aviation Sector Summary Reports. Year 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Passengers 66,093 345,078 457,544 200,097 276,926 476,063 384,016 265,082 267,532 338,943 313,343 Growth (%) 11.05% 422.11% 32.59% 56.27% 38.40% 71.91% 19.34% 30.97% 0.92% 26.69% 7.55% Source: Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN). Aviation Sector Reports (2010-2013,Passenger Only Aviation Data Report 2010-13 to Q1 2014 2014,Aviation Sector Summary Report Q4 2014 - Q1 2015 Q3-Q4 of 2015,NIGERIA AVIATION SECTOR Q3-Q4 2015 REPORT and Q1-Q2 of 2016Nigerian Aviation Sector Summary Report: Q1-Q2 2016)
See also Transport in Nigeria List of airports in Nigeria List of the busiest airports in Africa
References
External links OurAirports - Owerri SkyVector - Owerri