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Tag: NCAA

  • NCAA may clamp down on debtor airlines

    The Nigerian  Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), has concluded plans to clamp down on airlines that have made it a duty to withhold the regulatory body’s mandatory five per cent  Ticket Sales Charge (TSC ).

    The NCAA boss, Captain Muhtar Usman stated this yesterday  at the maiden interaction of all the public relations/information managers of all the parastatals and agencies in the aviation industry.

    He said the TSC is a charge on tickets made to passenger for the agencies collected in trust by the NCAA and shared among the organisations, Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Nigeria College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) as well as the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET).

    This monies, he further said  are charged to passengers and collected by airlines to be remitted to the custodians, NCAA for accurate percentile disbursement this is till any of the agency is privatised when it shall stop receiving from part of the fund.

    However, these monies , he said are not being remitted by some airlines who have owed the government hundreds of millions over the years and the NCAA intends to stamp the full hammer on such airlines.

    The authority , he said  will be part of the name and shame game by complementing its position with paid advertorial in five national newspapers as final warning to consistent defaulters.

    He said, “We are now ready to commence recrimination of the debtor airlines according to the provision of  the law.”

    He was however miffed by rumours making the  round  by debtors about the fund

    “I wish to use this opportunity to correct a serious misconception been sold to the public by some airlines. NCAA has reports that some airlines are purporting the five per cent  Ticket Sales Charge is being paid to us from their earnings. This they say is adversely affecting their operations.”

    “This is absolutely false and a misrepresentation. The Ticket Sales Charge is content charged in the ticket sold to passengers. The airlines role is to collect and remit to the regulatory authority.”

    “Let  me again refer to section 12 (1) of the Civil Aviation Act.2006 which says that “there shall continue to be a  five per cent air ticket contract, charter and cargo sales charge to be collected by the airlines and paid over to the Authority.”

    The NCAA boss said that the regulators will continue to progressively strengthen its oversight responsibilities to entrench safe and secure air transportation in the country.

  • NCAA confirms Lagos chopper’s crash

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority on Wednesday confirmed the crash of a Bristow Helicopter in Lagos.

    There are 12 people on board the chopper at the time of the crash.

    A statement signed by the NCAA’s spokesman, Mr. Fan Ndubuoke reads:” A Bristow Helicopter with registration number 5N – BDG – 760540 en route from one of the nation’s oil rigs has crashed at Oworonshoki, Lagos, today.

    “The Helicopter scheduled to arrive Lagos at 15.35pm had 12 people on board including the crew. However, the number of casualties is yet to be determined.

    “At present officials of the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the Nigeria Police are at the site providing rescue operation for the victims.

    “While this is ongoing, further details will be communicated as appropriate.”

    Sources said the chopper before crashing into the lagoon made a loud bang.

     

  • Why NCAA should be restructured, by experts

    Why NCAA should be restructured, by experts

    EXPERTS have canvassed an overhaul of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority ( NCAA) to boost  civil aviation regulations.

    They said unless a major restructuring was carried out at the regulatory authority, it might not effectively discharge its  oversight duties.

    According to a report obtained by The Nation, the experts recommended that steps should be taken by the government to address the challenges facing the authority .

    The report  put together by a team of experts who examined  the NCAA after the DANA Air crash a few years ago, recommended that a comprehensive review of the act establishing the authority should be urgently carried out.

    The report recommended that all appointments in the management cadre from the  positions  of assistant general managers  to directors should be the sole responsibility of the board of the authority, based on written examinations and assessment interviews.

    It also recommended that all levels of senior management in the authority should be by tenure.

    The report also recommended that 10 per cent of annual revenue of the NCAA be mandatorily devoted to training and manpower development.

    It reads: ” That besides the short term courses and programmes of the NCAA for various classes of airworthiness and safety oversight staff, the authority should evolve a well articulated programme of development for all grades of staff engaged in regulatory oversight from airworthiness to flight safety,  technical and cabin, medical economic and consumer protection.

    ‘’Others should include airspace, ground operations, handling, aerodromes, terminals and facilitation. That emphasis on training should shift away from ageing and contract staff as is currently the practice and rather focus on permanent and newly engaged staff for purposes of replacement and succession planning.

    “That attitude in the NCAA where very senior experienced staff and contract staff seek to perpetuate themselves , monopolise training and create a picture of indispensability does not augur well for the survival of the industry.

    The report continued: “That the NCAA board should subject all its present oversight staff to programmes on appropriate work culture,  attitudinal change and internal oversight on integrity.

    “That the NCAA should develop a clear code of conduct for all its staff , the details of which must be in public domain to check excesses of staff with undue motives.’’

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Enugu group wants NCAA bill passed into law

    A coalition of women interest groups in Enugu State have called on the Enugu State government to pass the National Coalition on Affirmative Action (NCAA) bill into law to give women prime position in the society.

    The call came yesterday when NCAA’s leadership, led by the Coordinator, Nkiru Ugwu Nwabueze, visited the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Edward Ubosi, in his office.

    Nwabueze explained that NCAA was not mandating that men and women be equal, but that women be given their fair share in the society.

    She noted that five states had passed the bill and implored Enugu to follow suit.

    Ubosi assured the women that the house would consider the bill, noting that it had been presented to the House during the last plenary but was not assented because its sponsors were ineffective.

    He counselled the women to re-present the bill to the Committee on Gender Affairs when the House Committees are constituted.

  • NCAA explains Aero air return

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has confirmed the air return made by Aero Contractors plane from Abuja Tuesday afternoon.

    According to a statement from Mr Fan Ndubuoke General Manager Public Affairs of NCAA, the aircraft which took off from the MMA2 about 3pm to Abuja from Lagos developed technical problem and made an air return as the normal procedure.

    The aircraft with 141 passengers on board on arrival at the international wing of MMIA Lagos had its passengers transfered to another Aero aircraft while some demanded for the refund of their fares.

    Some of the passengers according to Mr Ndubuoke rescheduled their flight for Wednesday.

    Mr Ndubuoke said NCAA will further examine what actually happened during the flight but assured the public of the agency’s commitment to safety and security of the Passenger.

  • Bi-Courtney urges NCAA to restrict licences’ issuance

    Chief Executive Officer, Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited (BASL), Mr Christophe Pennick,  has urged the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA)  to limit the number of Air Operator Certificates  (AOC) it issues to operators in the domestic airlines’ sector.

    He said the designation of many domestic carriers on few routes by the NCAA has led to a glut in the market, thereby bringing about unprofitable carriers, adding that the aviation regulatory body should allow domestic carriers consolidate rather than proliferate in the country.

    He said the government must take urgent steps through market protection policies to save domestic carriers.

    He said while the government grants licences to many domestic airlines that meet stipulated criteria under the NCAA civil aviation regulation, the Ghanaian government only licences not more than three airlines to save the sector and make the carriers profitable.

    He said: “The NCAA should check the way it issues AOC to airlines.There are too many airlines in Nigeria which market share is just too small. Many of the carriers are doing the usual triangular routes of Lagos-Abuja-Port-Harcourt. The proliferation of these airlines has eroded the gains of the airlines.

    “I hear the Federal Government is planning for a new national carrier; I would encourage the government to exercise caution because all over the world airlines are consolidating. China, with a population of over one billion people, has four major airlines, so if the Federal Government is bringing in or floating a new airline, how will the other airlines survive?”

    Pennick said the government must focus its attention on bringing in the few strong, profitable, affordable and safe airlines, rather than adding more.

    He said apart from one carrier, Nigeria’s biggest domestic airlines, the country does not have any large, strong airline, adding that most of the country’s airlines are weak, underfunded and under-capitalised.

    As a condition, he said the government could equally put up a process that would allow the foreign carriers to partner with domestic airlines by way of code-share arrangement between them to fly their passengers to other destinations beyond the (foreign airlines’) points of entry.

    He said it is one of the quickest ways the domestic carriers can thrive and become more competitive, expressing dismay at how Nigeria’s traffic rights are being given away freely to foreign carriers.

    Foreign airlines once had code-share partnership with many Nigerian carriers but their lack of schedule integrity has adversely affected the partnership.

    The most recent code-share partnership was between Emirates and Arik. The pact was signed last year but it remains to be seen whether the agreement still subsist because of the latter’s uncertain operations to Dubai.

     

    He however decried the clamour for a national airline, saying that the idea was no longer fashionable, adding that the three strong national airlines in Africa – Kenya Airways, South African Airways with the exception of Ethiopian Airways, are not doing well.

  • NCAA okays new cargo charges for nahco

    NCAA okays new cargo charges for nahco

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has given the nod to the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (Nahco Aviance) to implement a 20 per cent increase in cargo tariff.

    Under the new regime, nahco will charge N46 per kilogramme for cargo as against the old fee of N38. Courier handling charge will cost N54 per kilogramme as against N45.

    The approval was contained in a letter signed by its Director-General, Captain Muhktar Usman to the Managing Director Nahco, Mr Nobert Bielderman.

    The letter reads: “In line with powers conferred on the Authority by Part 18.7.3.1 of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs) 2012, approval is hereby given to your company to increase the Import Handling Charge from N38/kg to N46/kg and the Courier Handling Charge from N45/kg to N54/kg as agreed with the stakeholders.”

    The NCAA chief praised nahco for consulting with stakeholders before embarking on the increase,

    NCAA said: “We wish to advise that Nahco Aviance should continue to ensure adequate consultations with the stakeholders in line with the laid down guidelines and regulations guiding review or introduction of any charge.”

    It said NCAA should be invited as an observer in future consultations.

    Nahco and the Association of Nigeria Licenced Customs Agents (ANLCA) and the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) last month agreed to a 20 per cent tariff increment.

    At a meeting at the head office of Nahco in Lagos, on May 15, the negotiating team of ANCLA led by the Vice Chairman, Hon. Bola Ashiru-Balogun, the Treasurer, Afolabi Azeez and the Financial Secretary, Obanla Alex, said they reached the agreement with NAHCO in the interest of the industry.

     

  • NCAA designs emergency plan for airports

    NCAA designs emergency plan for airports

    THE Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority ( NCAA)  has designed a national aviation public emergency preparedness plan for airports.

    Its Director-General, Captain Usman Mukhtar, said the document was produced to handle issues arising from medical emergencies at the airports.

    Mukhtar said the document was  drawn mainly from the template provided by the International Civil Aviation Organisation ( ICAO).

    It would serve as a guiding material for aviation stakeholders in the handling of the suspected cases of communicable diseases within the Nigeria airspace.

    He disclosed this  last week, during the Collaborative Arrangement for the Prevention and Management of Public Health Events in Civil Aviation (CAPSCA) Assistance visit to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos by members of ICAO and the World Health Organisation ( WHO).

    He described the visit by the two bodies as part of efforts to checkmate the spread of communicable diseases through air travel .

    He said aviation stakeholders last year rose to the challenge of containing the Ebola Virus Disease, praising stakeholders for playing the pivotal role in the containment of the virus.

    Mukhtar said: “I want to appreciate stakeholders in the Nigeria aviation for the professionalism and containment of Ebola Virus Disease outbreak in 2014.

    “Some of you risked your lives and that of your families for the general good of the country.

    “This inter-agencies collaboration, coordination, cooperation and communication displayed during the Ebola Virus Disease outbreak, must be sustained to enable us effectively handle any suspected case of communicable disease in our airports.

    Dr Morenike Alex-Okoh, Director, Airport Health and Medical Services, Federal Ministry of Health, sued for sustained inter-agency cooperation in the implementation of the aviation act point of entry in Nigeria.

    She said the ministry was delighted with the visit given the fact that such previous visits had contributed in no small measure to the successful implementation of public heath emergencies at Nigeria’s points of entry.

    According to her, the successful containment of Ebola in Nigeria was achieved through collaboration at the global, national and state levels.

    Mr Michiel  Vreedenburgh, who is Programme Global  Coordinator, ICAO  headquarters in charge  of collaborative arrangement for the prevention and management of public health events in civil aviation ( CAPSCA )  said the visit to Nigeria was to assess the preparedness of the aviation sector, taking into account the priorities established by the WHO in containing outbreak of communicable diseases.

     

     

  • NCAA ‘probing Aero incident’

    NCAA ‘probing Aero incident’

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) said yesterday that it would investigate the diversion of Aero Contractors Lagos -Kaduna flight to  Nnamdi  Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, last Friday.

    Its director-general , Captain Muhtar Usman, spoke yesterday in Lagos.

    The Boeing 737 – 500 series with registration no. 5N – BLE and Flight no. NG 181 departed Lagos at  5. 35pm with 102 passengers on board.

    According to him, the NCAA has received the Mandatory Occurrence Report (MOR) from the airline and has commenced immediate investigation into the incident.

    He said :” Our Aviation Safety Inspectors (ASI) designated to the Airline are already critically studying the report which will assist in the requisite investigation.”

    The airline’s Engineers have fixed the aircraft, however; our Inspectors would still carry out the mandatory investigations to determine the cause of the incident.”

    He said it is pertinent to note that the Pilot and the crew managed the flight in line with Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) and landed the aircraft safely.

    Recall that  Aero flight suffered a depressurised cabin which triggered the oxygen masks to drop and the flight was diverted. Another aircraft was therefore provided by the airline to ferry the passengers to Kaduna.

    Capt. Usman assure all passengers that the robust safety regime of the NCAA will not be compromised.

    “Safety and security of our airline operations will continue to receive maximum attention.”

     

  • NCAA restores Discovery Air’s AOC

    NCAA restores Discovery Air’s AOC

    The Director-General, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Capt. Muhtar Usman, has lifted the suspension placed on Discovery Air.

    The regulator has, therefore, restored the carrier’s Air Operators Certificate (AOC).

    In a letter sent to the airline’s management titled: “Notice of restoration of Air Operators Certificate”, which was signed by the director-general, explained that the decision to restore the carrier’s AOC was predicated on the satisfactory conclusion of a Financial Health Audit of the airline.

    In the aftermath of the audit, the management of the airline has demonstrated encouraging commitment to offset the outstanding staff salaries by April 30, 2015.

    In addition, workers sent on compulsory leave without pay have been recalled.

    He said the NCAA is satisfied with the Letters of Credit from the airline’s financiers which had provided guarantee for its business in the long term.

    “Therefore, in consideration of all the actions taken by the airline to address passenger complaints, the Authority, pursuant to Section 35(6) of the Civil Aviation Act 2006 hereby lifts the suspension of, and restores the airline’s AOC with effect from the date of receipt of this letter,” the letter read in part.

    Capt. Usman, however, wishes to inform the airline that prior to commencement of flight operations, the authority shall carry out a mini audit of the airline to confirm the safety of its operations.

    The NCAA, it was learnt, would inspect the two aircraft and facilities of Discovery Air ahead of commencement of operations.

    The airline’s Chairman, Babatunde Babalola, said arrears of workers’salaries have been paid , even as the airline is having discussions with foreign partners willing to invest over N4billion into the carrier.

    The NCAA had said  it carried out a review of the operations of some domestic airlines after which letters of warning or suspension of AOC were served on defaulters.

    It alleged that Discovery Air failed to carry out   certain corrective actions within one week from the 1st to 7th of January this year  as raised  in an earlier letter to the operator.

    “Consequent upon the inability to address the issues raised, the Authority in its 8th of January, 2015 letter to the operator declared that  pursuant to Section 35[2] and [3][b] of the Civil Aviation  Act  2006 and Part 1.1.3.3.3[a] [1] of the Nig. CARs 2009, hereby suspends  the AOC of Discovery Airways  Limited.

    “The suspension takes effect from the 8th of January 2015, the date of the letter conveying the notice. This order would be in force pending the outcome of a comprehensive review of the Airlines operations to be carried out accordingly.”

    Babalola  said the regulatory agency erred with the suspension of itsAOC following the alleged maltreatment of its passengers last year.