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The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has formally requested the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to review the existing three-letter location code, “QRW”, assigned to Osubi Airport in Delta State.
Keyamo, in a letter addressed to IATA Area Manager for West and Central Africa, Dr Samuel Fatokun, made available to journalists on Monday by his Special Adviser on Media and Communications, Tunde Moshood, urged the international aviation body to consider adopting a code that more accurately reflects the airport’s official name and geographical location.
Osubi Airport, which has the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) four-letter location indicator, DNSU, is located in Osubi town, near Warri, Delta State.
Although the airport is sometimes informally referred to as “Warri Airport” because of its service to the Warri metropolitan area, the Federal Government said its official geographical designation remains Osubi Airport.
According to the Minister, the continued use of the IATA code QRW, which is associated with the broader Warri identity, does not sufficiently reflect the airport’s actual name and physical location.
The Federal Government has therefore asked IATA to commence a formal review of the code and, subject to the association’s coding standards and availability, consider an alternative three-letter designation with a clearer connection to Osubi.
Possible codes suggested for consideration include OSU, OSB, SUB and QSB, while the Minister acknowledged that the final designation would be determined by IATA in accordance with its established procedures.
Keyamo said aligning the airport’s IATA code with its official name and location would strengthen its identity, minimise possible confusion among passengers and aviation stakeholders, and promote consistency across travel, ticketing, baggage and other aviation information systems.
In a related directive, the Minister ordered airlines operating flights to and from the airport to ensure that flight tickets, luggage tags, boarding passes and other passenger-facing documents reflect the airport’s proper designation as Osubi, Delta State.
He also directed the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) and other relevant aviation agencies to ensure that the correct designation is consistently reflected in their systems, records, publications and operational interfaces.
The Minister clarified that the move was aimed at ensuring geographical and operational accuracy and was not intended to diminish the airport’s role in serving the wider Warri metropolitan area.
“Osubi is not Warri and Warri is not Osubi,” Keyamo stated.
The Federal Government reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that Nigeria’s aviation infrastructure, locations and operational information are accurately represented in national and international aviation systems.