Is the Takoradi Airport in the twin-city of Sekondi/Takoradi ready for the emerging oil and economic boom?
This is the big question on the lips of many residents in the twin-city.
The Takoradi Airport has been put in good shape for good business. The arrival hall and VIP lounge have been refurbished, the runway is in good condition, the immigration post and fire station have been well equipped and an ambulance service provided. The hangars and aprons are all in good state and comparable to other airports throughout the world.
The aprons are being improved and expanded to ensure that there would be enough space to park when air traffic starts building up at the port.
The hangars at the station have been refurbished by the Station Commander, Commodore Michael Samson-Oje, and his team. The surroundings of the airport are clean.
The runway, after the final special asphalt, is currently being grooved or hydroplaned to make it a little rougher for easy landing. One of the things the station is also endowed with is the vast parcel of land although some individuals have encroached on it.
The problem, however, is that the runway is still too short for bigger aircraft. The runway could not be extended beyond the present stretch because of some obstacles such as buildings, hills and a river at one end as well as encroachments by private individuals.
Experts, however, say smaller aircraft can easily take off.
Bigger aircraft such as those used by KLM and British Airways would, therefore, have to first land in Accra and connect to Takoradi by smaller aircraft.
Currently the space allocated to Ghana National Petroleum Company (GNPC) at the station, which it failed to use, has been reallocated temporarily to the oil companies that have invested so much in compacting the grounds for the use of their equipment.
With that done the oil companies have saved the Ghana Air Force the problem of having to invest in the development of the land in future before building hangars.
The station is also training more air control personnel and putting other structures in perfect shape in readiness for the oil business boom. It is anticipated that a booming oil industry will open more avenues for entrepreneurs to invest in the financial, hospitality, real estate development and other sectors.
This is expected to create more job avenues for the indigenous people but are the people ready to take advantage of the opportunities ahead?
The proximity of Abidjan, Lome, Ouagadougou and even Lagos to the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) is of high economic importance to the country, as at the moment, some business executives have started coming into the country with their helicopters.
This means that more business tycoons would be criss-crossing the sub-region and there would be the need for the local airline industry to position itself for good business. The country and the industry stand to benefit in terms of more jobs and revenue.
According to the Commercial Manager of City-Link, one of the local flight operators, Mr Sam Essel, they have taken proactive measures in readiness for the oil business boom about to hit the metropolis.
"I can assure you that the local industry would not be pushed off by any competitor. From the middle of this month, there will be a regular flight between Accra and Takoradi," he said.
"We are taking delivery of two new aircraft from South Africa, with a rich cream of pilots and who will undertake regular flights. The City-Link is regularly audited by corporate bodies that contracted us to operate charter flights across the coast of West Africa," he added.
He said the Takoradi Airport was ready and the airline would not leave anything to chance as regards the traffic that would be coming to Takoradi and the sub-region.
The air station at Takoradi is a military base for the Ghana Air Force but is also used by commercial aircraft.
At the moment the station has seen an improvement in its facilities, thanks to the just ended Ghana 2008 football tournament.
The location of the airport or the Air Force is very strategic to Ghana’s oil find because it would provide the landing base for aircraft bringing business executives who would want to invest in the oil industry.
Even though the Takoradi Airport is not that busy as expected, there are currently helicopter flights from Cote d’Ivoire and Nigeria to the airport, as well as local operators such as City-Link and Antrak Air, etc.
2 comments:
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