Gembu airstrip overgrown by grass, abandoned for 20yrs – Mambilla Air, CEO

Gembu airstrip, the only facility to enable flight operations by light aircraft into the Mambilla Plateau in Taraba State, has been abandoned for about two decades, thus crippling flight operations into that area.

Mambilla Air hitherto operated flights to and from Gembu until successive governments neglected to maintain facilities at the airstrip, which has the capability of serving as a security response in Taraba State.

Alhaji Aliyu B. Malabuz, the chief executive officer, Hillview Travels Ltd, the operators of Mambilla Air, told our correspondent exclusively that Mambilla Air would create over 1,000 new jobs when it begins flight operations from Yola, Jalingo and to Gembu.

He said they would operate a 19-seater aircraft and would sell seats as low as N25,000 from

Gembu to Jalingo.

He tasked the incoming president, Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu to invest in the Gembu airstrip to enable the airline recommence flight operations into Mambilla.

“We want the federal government to revive the Gembu airstrip. We want the federal government to revamp the airstrip so we can use it for commercial flights.

We have finalised modalities to operate flights to Gembu, but we cannot because the airstrip is not functional. We have even finalised the loan with our bankers, but we can’t access the loan because the airstrip isn’t functional.

He noted that the presidentelect had promised in principle to revamp the airstrip.

“The president-elect has promised to revisit the hydro dam project and revisit the airstrip issue,” he said.