NCAA okays Lagos airport for safe, standard operations

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has okayed the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos safe for both local and international operations.

The endorsement followed safety and standard audit of the airport in line with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARs).

With the revalidation, the insurance premium on aircraft using the airport will reduce and process of its concession to investors can now be fast-tracked.

Director-General of the NCAA, Captain Muhtar Usman, who presented the certificate with No. NCAA/ARD/AC/001 to the Managing Director of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Saleh Dunoma in Lagos yesterday, said in pursuant to the power conferred on the Authority in Section 30 (3)(K) of the Civil Aviation Act 2006 and having fulfilled the requirement of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations Part 12 for the issuance of an aerodrome certificate, “the Authority hereby grants aerodrome certificate to the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria.”

The certificate entitles FAAN to operate the airport for the purpose of take-off and landing of aircraft engaged in flight for scheduled and non-scheduled commercial operations.

The director-general said the certification was a clear indication that the airport had met regulatory safety requirements on a continuous basis.

He added that it is providing uniform conditions for safe and efficient operation of aircraft from all other states, as required by Article 15 of the Chicago Convention.

He, therefore, advised the FAAN management to see the certification as a fresh challenge to ensure sustenance of the certificate. Meanwhile, the NCAA boss has refuted certain media reports that the recently-concluded United States (U.S.) audit disparaged Nigerian airports.

He said the frame-work of the audit does not cover the airports, rather, “it covers the state’s aviation law, regulations and oversight capability in accordance with the eight critical elements.”

Usman stated that the certification of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, is in its final stage while the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Port Harcourt International Airport, Port Harcourt; Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu and Kaduna International Airport, Kaduna, will be certified by July 2018.

Dunoma, after receiving the certificate, assured that the FAAN would sustain and improve on the present status. Also, Secretary-General of the Aviation Safety RoundTable Initiative (ASRTI), Group Captain John Ojikutu, said that the implication of the certification is that FAAN can now be sued by any operator for damages to property or equipment due to negligence.

Ojikutu added that the NCAA too could be jointly sued and “hopefully, it must have ensured that the certificated airport is properly and sufficiently insured for damages to any aircraft that could be caused through operational inadequacies or by its members of staff.”