Danger looms at Takoradi Airport as uncompleted drain works by the Sekondi -Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly has redirected heavy current flood waters onto the runway posing threat to flight landing and takeoff.
As a result of the flood, the required distance or the length for landing by five domestic aircrafts operating between Accra and Takoradi has been reduced as the water has covered half of the runway.
This according to the air experts posed a serious danger to flight safety and must be rectified immediately to avert the looming disaster.
As a result of this development, all domestic flights carrying officials of the oil exploration and mining companies as well as investors in the metropolis have been cancelled leaving passengers stranded at the Takoradi Airport.
The operators said they incurred a lot of debt and passenger inconveniences as well as losing the confidence of their passengers which they said was a threat to the growth of the industry. Mr David Debe, the Area Supervisor/Dispatch officer for Antrak Air, one of the operators said the problem was having a lot of negative effects on their operations.
He said apart from losing revenue and passenger confidence, they incur additional cost to ensure that the passengers were comfortable until the water had subsided.
Mr Debe said other operators cancelled their flights and resorted to other means which they did not plan for.
Some of the stranded passengers told the Daily Graphic that they had other businesses to take care of but could not because of the delays casued by the floods.
When this reporter got to the runway half of it has been covered by the flood waters due to the abandoned drained project embarked on by the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly.
When contacted, the Air Force Station Commander said when they saw the problem coming they raised the issue with the authorities and it was agreed that the drain causing the problem now should be diverted. But that project, he said, was yet to be completed.
Officials of the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly said funds for the completion of the project had been channeled to another project since they were not allowed by the military authorities to follow the original plan since 2008.
It said even the drawings for the said diversion project was yet to be submitted to the assembly to enable it to source funding for its completion.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic, the Takoradi Station Commander of the Ghana Air Force, Air Commodore I.A.R. Abass, said the situation was not the best. He explained that the situation had reduced the required length for safe landing and take-off.
He said since the runway had been reduced by the floods aircraft operators were left with no option than to cancel all flights.
‘’With the volume of water on the runway, if any aircraft made an attempt to land it would be a disaster so to be on the safer side all local flights had to be canceled’’, he said.
Air Cdr. Abass said during the rehabilitation of the airport, GAF explained to the Metropolitan Assembly that it would be impossible to cut the runway to change the existing drain due to the short time the contractor had to finish for the CAN 2008 football tournament.
He said the decision was taken to divert the course in order not to touch the runway but the project is yet to be completed.
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