The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has given an approval for the commencement of scheduled commercial flights at the Samuel Ladoke Akintola Airport, Ibadan.
The approval was contained in a letter dated 16 December 16, 2025 and addressed to the Managing Director/Chief Executive of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).
NCAA states that it has given an approval for the issuance of provisional interim operational permit for the commencement of scheduled flight operations at the Ibadan Airport.
The approval followed efforts by the Oyo State government to upgrade the Samuel Ladoke Akintola Airport, Alakia, Ibadan to an international airport.
The state government undertook several projects, including the extension and widening of the runway, improvement of airfield lightings, the construction of a 500,000-litre aviation fuel storage facility and a new Protocol Lounge, among others.
As stated in the letter, the NCAA stated that it gave the approval after reviewing the updated status of safety-critical facilities, operational arrangements and mitigation measures, which followed recent developments at the aerodrome and the additional information provided by FAAN.
It added that it had granted approval for non-scheduled operations in an earlier letter.
The letter reads in part: “The Authority refers to its earlier correspondence Ref. No: NCAA/DAAS/TECH/008/VOL 1/173 dated 12th December, 2025, regarding the operational status of Samuel Ladoke Akintola Airport (SLAA), Ibadan, and the temporary approval granted for non-scheduled operations.
“Following recent developments at the aerodrome and the additional information provided by FAAN subsequent to the issuance of the above referenced letter, the Authority has reviewed the updated status of safety-critical facilities, operational arrangements, and mitigation measures currently in place.
“In view of the above, and pursuant to the provisions of Nig.CARs Part 12, Volume I (2023), I am directed to convey the Authority’s approval for the issuance of provisional interim operational permit for the commencement of scheduled flight operations at Samuel Ladoke Akintola Airport, Ibadan.”
The NCAA declared that the provisional interim permit would be subjected to strict compliances with salient work plan conditions, including full operationalisation of emergency response arrangements.
