The Bamenda-Bafut Airport was brought back to life ahead of the historic visit of Pope Leo XIV to Cameroon on April 16, 2026.
For the first time in years, Commercial aircrafts landed again at the airport. The runway was rehabilitated, navigation equipment was installed, the surroundings were cleaned, and the road leading to the facility received urgent attention.
On the day of the Pope's visit, Bamenda witnessed scenes many people had almost given up hope of seeing again: an aircraft landing safely at the regional capital's airport and the facility hosting one of the biggest events in the history of the North West Region.
Four months later, however, the excitement has given way to a troubling silence.
The airport is still without regular commercial flights.
The development has raised serious questions, particularly after it emerged that the government spent 217 million Francs on works linked to the airport.
The money was reportedly broken down as follows, FCFA 105 million was spent on the cleaning, clearing and disinfection of the airport and nearby dumpsites.
Another 32 million Francs was used to cover gutters at the airport with wood.
The council also reportedly spent 45 million Francs on providing work tools Council, while FCFA 35 million went into the installation of decorative lighting along the airport road and within the airport environment.
Together, the four expenditure items amount to FCFA 217 million.
The figures have revived the debate over whether the huge mobilisation around the airport was merely designed to prepare Bamenda for the Pope's one-day visit or whether it was part of a broader plan to permanently restore the facility.
The Bamenda City Mayor, Achombong Tambeng Paul, has maintained that the council's intervention was not meant only for the papal visit.
According to his utterances, the Mayor said the council's efforts were intended to contribute to the continued functionality of the airport beyond the Pope's arrival. But he also expressed disappointment that commercial flights had not resumed as expected, saying there had been indications that Camair-Co would restart operations.
The Bamenda City Council's FCFA 217 million must, however, be separated from the larger rehabilitation programme carried out by aviation authorities.
Official information from Aéroports Du Cameroun, ADC S.A., shows that 31 projects were executed at Bamenda Airport between January and April 2026 at an estimated cost of FCFA 700 million, funded by ADC. The works included runway and movement-area maintenance, pavement markings, lighting rehabilitation, cleaning of the airport platform, maintenance of green spaces, refurbishment of the VIP lounge and the renewal or servicing of ground-support equipment.
The Cameroon Civil Aviation Authority, CCAA, also worked with ASECNA and other aviation partners to restore operational capacity at the airport. New satellite-based flight procedures were validated, while equipment including a runway alignment beacon, distance-measuring equipment and approach-slope indicators were installed or upgraded. Camair-Co aircraft also carried out test flights before the Pope's arrival.
In other words, the FCFA 217 million spent by the Bamenda City Council was only part of a much wider mobilisation involving several state institutions.
Yet the fundamental question remains: if the airport was capable of receiving the Pope's aircraft and test flights, why can ordinary passengers still not fly to and from Bamenda?
Official records show that Bamenda Airport's commercial operations had been suspended for several years. The CCAA previously linked the absence of regular commercial flights to the suspension of the route by Camair-Co for security reasons.
But the April 16 papal visit demonstrated that aircraft could once again land at the facility after extensive technical and safety preparations.
The airport was therefore reopened for a historic purpose, but the expected commercial benefit has yet to follow.
The situation is becoming even more noticeable because the road leading to the airport is already showing signs of deterioration only a few months after the massive pre-papal mobilisation.
With potholes beginning to appear along sections of the same access road barely four months after the Pope's visit, questions are growing about the quality, durability and maintenance of the infrastructure.
A functioning commercial airport could significantly reduce travel time between Bamenda and Yaoundé, improve access for business people, investors and tourists, facilitate emergency travel and strengthen the economic connection between the North West and the rest of Cameroon.
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