Get Guardian on Google• As Air traffic controllers threaten strike over poor infrastructure
• Keyamo seeks dialogue with NATCA
Senate has raised concerns about the safety implications of prolonged airspace closures for Very Important Personalities (VIPs), warning that poor coordination could turn routine flight delays into aviation disasters.
The lawmakers have consequently ordered an investigation into the practice, with particular attention to commercial aircraft forced to circle for hours while awaiting clearance for VIP movements.
They also want aviation authorities to consider diverting affected flights to alternative airports rather than keeping aircraft airborne for extended periods.
The resolution followed a motion sponsored by Senator Isah Jibrin during yesterday’s plenary, which highlighted the growing disruption to commercial flight operations caused by airspace restrictions.
The Senate mandated its Committee on Aviation to investigate the circumstances surrounding the restrictions and determine whether aviation authorities were complying with established safety and operational procedures.
The committee, chaired by Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, is to engage the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Air Traffic Controllers’ Association (NATCA) has threatened to withdraw its services over the alleged persistent failure of the Federal Government to address deficiencies in the country’s airspace communication and surveillance infrastructure.
The association specifically lamented that the lack of improvements in critical air traffic management equipment, especially communication systems, despite repeated engagements with relevant authorities and announced procurement approvals, was hindering its ability to discharge its duties effectively.
But the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, asked the association and its members to embrace sustained dialogue over the concerns, saying that the Federal Government, through the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP), had approved the acquisition of some equipment for air traffic controllers.
Speaking yesterday during his welcome address at the 55th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of NATCA with the theme: ‘Beyond Silos to Synergy: Shaping the Future of Nigerian Air Traffic Management,’ in Lagos, the President of NATCA, Amos Edino, warned that the association may be forced to consider withdrawing its services if the government failed to present a clear strategic plan for the comprehensive overhaul of the infrastructure.
Edino regretted that the association had, over the years, raised concerns about the condition of communication and surveillance facilities across the country without receiving the desired response.
According to him, NATCA had sought high-level intervention from Keyamo, the National Counter Terrorism Centre, the Office of the National Security Adviser and the management of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), all to no avail.
