The Nigeria Police Force has begun investigating the alleged use of three Air Peace buses to block the runway at the Lagos airport during Tuesday’s aviation workers’ strike. The Police Airport Command confirmed that the three buses are in its custody after they were towed from the airside.
Police spokesperson ASP Muhammed Adeola said no arrests had been made, but investigators were working to identify the drivers who took the vehicles onto the restricted area. He said the buses could help investigators determine who was responsible for the runway obstruction.
The incident disrupted aircraft movement and contributed to the grounding of Air Peace operations at the Lagos and Abuja airports during the industrial action. Aviation unions had targeted Air Peace over alleged failure to remit the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge owed to the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
The unions also accused some domestic airlines of making it difficult for workers to join trade unions freely, alleging that employees feared discrimination or victimisation. They said the action followed several weeks of attempts to resolve the grievances with affected airlines.
However, aviation security expert Group Captain John Ojikutu (retd.) said the runway incident exposed serious security weaknesses at the Lagos airport. Ojikutu questioned how the buses gained access to the airside and reached a position where they could obstruct aircraft movement.
He said vehicles authorised to operate in the airside area should have radio communication and obtain clearance from the control tower before entering or moving within the restricted zone.
The former airport security chief said both the NCAA and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) should explain how the security procedures were breached. He described the incident as a serious national security risk, arguing that airports and airlines are critical national assets.
Ojikutu urged the authorities to strengthen airside access controls and ensure that every vehicle entering restricted airport areas complies with established security procedures.
