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Tag: NCAA

  • JUST IN: NCAA suspends licences of 3 private jet owners

    JUST IN: NCAA suspends licences of 3 private jet owners

    Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has suspended licences of three Permit for Non-Commercial Flight (PNCF), otherwise known as private jet owners, over alleged failure to comply with regulatory requirements.

    Acting Director-General of NCAA, Capt. Chris Najomo, disclosed this to newsmen on Tuesday in Lagos.

    Najomo said that after issuing a stern warning to the PNCFs in March, the authority deployed its men to monitor activities of private jet owners at airport terminals across the country.

    He said that consequent upon the heightened surveillance, three private operators were found to have violated the annexure provisions of their PNCF and Part 9114 of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations, 2023.

    Najomo further stated that NCAA would be carrying out a re-evaluation of regulatory requirements compliance of all PNCFs owners within the next 72 hours.

    This, he said, this was in line with the authority’s zero tolerance for violations of regulations.

    “In line with our zero tolerance for violation of regulations, the authority has suspended the PNCF of these operators.

    “To further sanitise the general aviation sector, I have directed that a re-evaluation of all holders of PNCF be carried out on or before April 19, to ascertain compliance with regulatory requirements.

    “All PNCF holders will be required to submit relevant documents to the authority within the next 72 hours,” he said.

    Najomo recalled that in 2023, the use of private jets for commercial purposes had gotten the attention of the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo (SAN), who issued marching orders for cessation of such acts.

    He said that in March, NCAA issued a stern warning to holders of the permit for non-commercial flights, PNCF, against engaging in the carriage of passenger cargo or mail for hire and reward.

    Najomo said that the riot act was also directed at existing Air Operator Certificate (AOC) holders who utilised aircraft listed on their PNCF for commercial charter operations.

    “It must be emphasised that only the aircraft listed in the Operation Specifications of the AOC are authorised to be used in the provision of such charter services.

    “Any of those AOC holders who wish to use the aircraft for charter operations must apply to the NCAA to delist the affected aircraft from the PNCF and include it into the AOC operations specification.

    “NCAA wishes to reiterate to the travelling public not to patronise any airline charter operator who does not hold a valid AOC issued by the NCAA, when they wish to procure charter operation services,” he said.

    The NCAA boss, thereafter, encouraged legitimate players in the aviation industry to promptly report such illegal activities to the authority for necessary action.

  • NCAA sends strong warning to airlines over unfriendly weather conditions

    NCAA sends strong warning to airlines over unfriendly weather conditions

    The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has warned pilots and airline operators to exercise caution over a three-day dust haze that will last from Monday to Wednesday across the country.

    Acting Director General of NCAA, Captain Chris Najomo, gave the warning in a statement made available to newsmen in Lagos, on Monday.

    The aviation chief said that the warning was imperative in view of the weather report of the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMeT) released on Sunday.

    The weather report alerted the public on the possibility of deterioration in visibility as a result of observed dust haze propagated into the country.

    NiMet’s weather outlook predicted moderate dust haze with horizontal visibility range from 2km to 5km over the North.

    It envisaged moderate dust haze with a horizontal visibility range of 2km to 5km, and localized horizontal visibility of less than or equal to 1000m over the North central.

    The agency forecast dust haze over the inland of the South and the coastal region throughout the forecast period.

    For Tuesday, moderate dust haze with horizontal visibility range of 2km to 5km is anticipated over the northern region.

    The statement also reads: “Moderate dust haze with a horizontal visibility range of 2kn to 5km, and localized horizontal visibility of less than or equal to 1000m is anticipated over the North central.

    The inland of the South and the coastal region of the country throughout the forecast period.

    According to NiMet, thick dust haze is expected over the northern region throughout the forecast period.

    The agency anticipated moderate dust haze with horizontal visibility range of 2km to 5km.

    It further anticipated localized horizontal visibility of less than or equal to 1,000m over the North Central, the Inland of the South and the Coastal belt of the country.

    “Airline operators are advised to get updated weather reports and forecasts from NiMet for effective planning in their operations,” it said.

    The NCAA urged passengers to exercise patience and understanding during the period, as their safety was of utmost importance.

    The regulatory body’s warning to airlines on safety comes days after it suspended the permit of Mattini Airline Services Ltd pending completion of investigations into a runway excursion involving a Challenger CL 601 aircraft, operated by the firm.

    The private jet operated by the airline which had departed Abuja with 15 persons on board, overshot the runway while landing at Ibadan Airport on Friday.

    There was no fatality in the incident.

    NCAA, following the incident, said it had also initiated a safety and economic audit of all private jet operations in Nigeria.

    It assured the travelling public of its utmost commitment to safety and the entrenchment of global best practices.

  • NCAA MD faces sack over hidden billions of IGR

    NCAA MD faces sack over hidden billions of IGR

    The House of Representatives has accused the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) of hiding billions of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) thereby depriving the nation of its financial responsibility.

    The House of Reps Committee on Finance subsequently threatened to remove the Managing Director and other top officials from the authority to allow for more transparent leaders.

    Rep. James Falake (APC-Lagos)  said this at the resumed interactive session with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja on Friday.

    He said the NCAA was hiding revenue generated, and that was why it had refused to give the committee the requested data on the number of passengers that flew airlines.

    He, however, promised that the committee would get the money no matter how hard the NCAA tried to hide it.

    “You people have always reported a negative balance. I have done so much research this year on NCAA, which is why I have so much information.

    “If we further compel you to provide such information, somebody else will occupy that office,” he said.

    The committee unanimously agreed that if the NCAA came back and could not produce the requested document on or before Dec. 14, it would affect their seat.

    The committee said it was empowered by law to scrutinise the NCAA’s document and must be tendered on request, adding that anything such as presenting the document would amount to a waste of time.

    The committee said the abandoned recklessness going on in the nation’s domestic airlines was unprecedented.

    Falake demanded comprehensive details on how the NCAA arrived at the data of passengers flying month by month and which airline carried the passengers submitted before it.

    He urged  the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMET) to also produce its reconciliation of the revenue shared by the NCAA, adding that it was not enough for the NCAA to give it just N2 billion without proper reconciliation.

    Falake, however, asked the NCAA to produce “the total number of passengers that flew all airlines on a monthly basis, and the airline,and  how many passengers they carried.

    Others included: which destination and the fare charge, where  the five per cent of the money retired was, and which bank account and distribution pattern of that sum and evidence of distribution

    The committee also threatened to issue an arrest warrant for Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) if it failed to appear before it on Dec. 4.

    In their response to various allegations, the NCAA representatives, Captain Ibrahim Dambazau and Abubakar Gachi said  the data of passengers being requested was presented earlier and it was correct, contrary to the committee’s claim of presenting fake data.

    He said  the data was analyzed with the same document presented before the committee.

    NIMET, on his part, said it used to do account reconciliation with the NCAA before now but it had since stopped in 2017 with Federal Airport Authority of N.ligeria (FAAN).

    From the documents earlier submitted to the committee, NCAA declared N12.7 billion revenue from the share of the gross revenue allotted to regulatory agencies in the industry.

    The lawmaker, however, said the amount was below the computed gross revenue share received by NCAA worth N66 billion,  realised from both revenues accrued from local and international travels for 2022.

  • Missing N43bn revenue: Reps threaten to hand over NCAA management to EFCC

    Missing N43bn revenue: Reps threaten to hand over NCAA management to EFCC

    The House of Representatives has threatened to hand over the management of Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged missing N43 billion revenue generated in 2022.

    Rep. James Faleke, Chairman, House Committee on Finance, issued the notice in Abuja on Monday, during the ongoing interactive session with revenue generating agencies.

    The records provided by Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) revealed that 16 million passengers were transported by local airlines in 2022.

    It revealed that three million passengers were transported by international airlines.

    It was gathered that N1.28 trillion was realised from tickets sold to international passengers, out of which N64 billion represented five per cent shared by the five regulatory agencies in 2022.

    It was also confirmed that the ADR16 documents, managed by Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), showed that total of 14,572,614 passengers were airlifted by local airlines in 2021.

    From the documents submitted to the Committee, NCAA declared N12.7 billion revenue from the share of the gross revenue allotted to regulatory agencies in the industry.

    The lawmaker, however, said the amount was below the computed gross revenue share received by NCAA worth N66 billion realised from both revenues accrued from local and international travels for 2022.

    The breakdown of NCAA’s revenue share showed that N31 billion was realised from local passengers.

    Also, N35.85 billion was realised from international flights for the period under review.

    According to the records provided to the Committee, 5 per cent of all tickets sold to local and international airlines were distributed among five regulatory agencies.

    Breakdown of the sharing formular showed that 56 per cent of the amount is for NCAA, 22 per cent is for Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA).

    Nine per cent is for Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMET), seven per cent is for Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT).

    Meanwhile, six per cent is for Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB).

    Faleke also alleged that the agency was having outstanding of N8 billion revenue undeclared from revenue accrued from international passengers for 2022.

    In his response to various allegations, the NCAA representatives, Captain Ibrahim Dambazau and Abubakar Gachi explained that some local airlines were working for the agency.

    They added that the affected airline operators were indebted to NCAA.

    Piqued by the undue controversies trailing the amount realised and under-remittance, Faleke requested for NCAA’s audited reports.

    He also demanded for comprehensive reports of the NCAA banks operated before transition to Treasury Single Account (TSA) since 2015 to Q1 of 2023.

    The committee also requested for the list of all local airlines that were indebted to NCAA.

  • NCAA probes Abuja-bound flight that landed in Asaba

    NCAA probes Abuja-bound flight that landed in Asaba

    The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has commenced investigation into the circumstances surrounding United Nigeria flight NUA 0506 to Asaba and the confusion it has created in the public domain.

    This is contained in a statement signed by NCAA Director – General, Capt. Musa Nuhu on Monday in Abuja.

    ”However, preliminary steps have been taken pending conclusions of ongoing investigation.

    “The Authority wishes to reassure the traveling public that it will leave no stone unturned as it has always done in the past to ensure continued safety of the aviation industry, ” he said.

    Meanwhile , Mr Achilleus- Chud Uchegbu, Head Corporate Communications of United Nigeria Airlines, in a statement said the flight which took of in Lagos en route Abuja on Sunday was temporarily diverted to the Asaba International Airport, Delta.

    According to him, the diversion was due to poor destination weather.

    ”At all material time, the pilots of the aircraft were aware of the temporary diversion and were properly briefed.

    ”However, a wrong announcement was made by cabin crew upon landing in Asaba creating confusion among the passengers.

    ”Meanwhile, the aircraft had landed safely in Abuja following improvement on destination,” he said.

  • FG threatens to invoke NCAA Act on airline operators over delayed, cancelled flights

    FG threatens to invoke NCAA Act on airline operators over delayed, cancelled flights

    The federal government has revealed intentions to invoke provisions of the Act establishing the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to compel airline operators in the country to start paying compensation for delayed and cancelled flights.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo (SAN) made the disclosure on Monday while stressing that the FG would compel airlines to pay compensation for delayed and cancelled flights not caused by nature.

    “You have blamed the government and a few things we do. But I also want to say that it is not all the time that it is government. At times, you say you were waiting for passengers to finish passing through the screening machine.

    “At times, they have finished passing through screening machines. They wait in the lounge for five hours and you cancel your flight. So, you see, after some time, we will start implementing the provisions of the NCAA Act. You know, Nigerians don’t know there is compensation for delay.

    “If it is an act of God, you cannot pay. But if it is human fault, the NCAA Act says you will pay. So, for all airline operators, while I have praised and supported you, I will also support Nigerians. You will pay them. After some time, I will put my feet on the ground. Pay them when you delay, cancel their flight,” Keyamo said.

    TNG reports domestic airlines under the aegis of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), on Monday, demanded that the FG should allow airline operators in the country to procure the requisite licence for the importation and distribution of aviation fuel, popularly called Jet A1.

    AON also asked the government to provide a dedicated support line for domestic airlines to access foreign exchange from the Central Bank of Nigeria in order to enable the carriers to meet their obligations to air travellers.

    They made the call during a courtesy visit on the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development at his office in Abuja.

    The President, AON, Abdulmunaf Yunusa, said the purpose of the visit was to brief the minister about the challenges in the sector and proffer solutions, as well as congratulate him on his recent appointment as minister.

    He said, “There is an urgent need to facilitate the liberalisation, procurement and distribution of JetA1 nationwide and allow AON to procure requisite licence for product importation and distribution and also immediate review of all industry taxes, fees and charges to determine applicability in line with cost recovery model.”

    “We call on the Federal Government to establish and provide a dedicated support line for domestic airline operators to have unfettered access of foreign exchange through the Central Bank of Nigeria at the official I & E window in support of local and international transactions,” he stated.

    Responding, Keyamo said the challenge of forex had been lingering, but promised his guests that “the ministry will liaise with the CBN to see how operators can get forex at a single-digit interest rate of 1.5 to two per cent as requested.”

  • Respite as aviation union shelves planned strike

    Respite as aviation union shelves planned strike

    Aviation workers under the umbrella of the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) have suspended their plans to embark on strike by Aug. 16 to the respite of air travellers.

    Mr Ocheme Oba, General Secretary, NUATE, confirmed the development in a statement issued on Wednesday in Lagos.

    NUATE had, in a circular issued on Aug. 15, said aviation security workers would embark on an indefinite nationwide strike over poor wages.

    The circular revealed that the workers are usually paid a meagre N30,000 monthly, noting that the wage was insufficient, thereby bringing untold hardship on the workers.

    Oba disclosed that the union had sent a letter to the NCAA informing it of the union’s decision to embark on industrial action.

    He said that after receipt of the letter, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) had intervened in the matter, and requested to be given a week to deliberate on the workers’ demands.

    The Union’s scribe said the NCAA had promised to organise a meeting between the union, private security firms and the airlines.

  • NCAA urges airline operators to comply with insurance regulations

    NCAA urges airline operators to comply with insurance regulations

    The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has urged airlines and other service providers in the subsector to comply with the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs) 2022 on insurance cover.

    NCAA Director-General, Capt. Musa Nuhu, in statement he issued on Sunday in Abuja, said that the directive was contained in an all operators letter, referenced NCAA/DG/AIR/11/16/369 of Aug. 11, 2023.

    Nuhu said the letter, personally signed by him, was addressed to all airlines and allied aviation service providers.

    According to him, the need for compliance is sequel to the coming into force of Nig. CARs 2022 on 10th July, 2023 which makes it mandatory for all airlines to comply with Part 18.14.1.1 of the regulations.

    “Specifically, Part 18.14.1.1 of the regulations provides, amongst others, that all airlines and other allied aviation service providers must not operate without adequate and valid insurance cover; submitting to the authority copies of valid insurance certificate.

    “They must also provide evidence of payment of premium and other policy documents of insurance cover of not less than three months as specified in IS: 18.14.1.1.

    “Having insurance document which must be adequate and renewed before the expiration of the current policy and be submitted to the NCAA as soon as it is renewed,“ Nuhu stated in the statement.

    He said non-adherence to the regulation would attract immediate sanctions, including the grounding of the specific aircraft, and taking enforcement action against any airline or service provider that defaulted.

     

  • NCAA suspends operation of Max Air’s B737 aircraft fleet

    NCAA suspends operation of Max Air’s B737 aircraft fleet

    The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has suspended the operations of all  Boeing 737 aircraft in Max Air fleet.

    The suspension was issued through a letter dated July 12, and titled “Suspension of parts A3 and D43 of the Operations Specifications issued to Max Air with immediate effect”

    The letter was signed by Capt. Ibrahim Dambazau, Director, Operations Training and Licensing, NCAA, on behalf of Capt. Musa Nuhu, Director General, NCAA.

    Part A3 deals with the airline’s aircraft authorisation and D43 deals with Aircraft Listing of the operations specification issued to Max Air Ltd.

    “The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) hereby suspends Parts A3 (Aircraft Authorisation) and D43 (Aircraft Listing) of the Operations Specifications issued to Max Air Ltd. with regards to the operations of the Boeing B737 aircraft type in your fleet.

    “With the above suspension, you are to immediately suspend the operations of all Boeing B737 aircraft in your fleet,” the letter read in part.

    The NCAA listed several occurrences that involved B737 aircraft in the fleet of the airline that promoted its action.

    The aviation regulator, in the letter, said it had constituted a team of inspectors to conduct an audit of airline.

    It added that results of the audit must be found satisfactory by the authority prior to considering the restoration of the operation specifications to the organisation to further operate the aircraft type.

  • BREAKING: Disaster averted as aircraft skids off Lagos airport runway

    BREAKING: Disaster averted as aircraft skids off Lagos airport runway

    Disaster was averted at the Murtala Muhammed Airport 2 in Lagos State on Wednesday after a United Nigeria Airlines’ aircraft skidded off the runway.

    Mr Achilleus-Chud Uchegbu, Head, Corporate Communications confirmed the development in a statement in Lagos.

    Uchegbu said that the aircraft, which had 50 passengers on board, was flying in from the airport in Abakaliki, when the incident happened.

    He said the aircraft landed safely but was forced to terminate its movement to the apron off the runway.

    He said all passengers disembarked safely and were transported to the arrival hall alongside their luggage.

    The spokesman said that officials of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) were at the scene of the incident alongside engineers, in order to move the aircraft to the hangar.

    He said  that Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) had also been duly notified.

    Uchegbu reiterated the airline’s commitment on maintaining the strictest safety standards in its operations and prioritising  passenger safety always.