The federal
government was yesterday confirmed to have retained the United States of
America Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Category One Safety Status with
the issuance of certification to the Minister of Aviation, Chief Osita Chidoka,
in the US.
This will
put to an end the anxieties and worries in the industry about the fear that
Nigeria would lose the certification due to possible infraction on the given
safety standard with the Dana Air flight crash in 2012 and the Associated
Aviation flight crash in 2013.
It was learnt
that the US FAA has congratulated the country as the minister promised to
reform and strengthen the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) in line with the
US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) for greater efficiency and
service delivery.
The benefits
of the FAA Category 1 Safety Status is that the Nigerian aviation sector is
rated highly in the world aviation industry; Nigerian airlines have easy access
to credit facility from international financiers, and insurance premium for
Nigerian registered aircraft is relatively low among others.
Chidoka was
issued the certification after the Nigerian aviation industry, through the
Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and other major agencies in the
sector, closed all the identified open items when the FAA team visited the country
in April this year.
FAA had
carried out an intensive internal aviation safety assessment of the sector
earlier in the year and there were fears that the country might not retain the
status it earned in September 2010.
The
minister, in a statement personally signed by him, stated that the FAA informed
him that Nigeria had continued to meet the safety oversight requirements under
the international aviation standards.
Chidoka
noted that the retention of Category One Status was hard earned and promised that
the government would continue to ensure that the country retained the status
and other future safety certifications in a seamless way.
During his visit to the US, Chidoka said plans were underway to reform the AIB and elevate it to be in tandem with other similar international bodies for efficiency delivery of service.
During his visit to the US, Chidoka said plans were underway to reform the AIB and elevate it to be in tandem with other similar international bodies for efficiency delivery of service.
He added
that the NTSB team also provided some insights on the operations and activities
of the board and advised the visiting team on some best practices to
institutionalise and achieve the desired outcomes.
Besides,
Chidoka further enjoined the US Department of Transportation (DoT) to extend
its assistance to the Nigerian aviation industry in a bid to improve safety and
security components.
“On the
final leg of the official trip, Chidoka met with the US Transport Security
Administration (TSA) to explore opportunities for capacity building and
strengthening of aviation security systems and infrastructure.
“The
minister requested for programme training and exchange programs between the two
agencies that would result in direct and more meaningful transfer of expert
knowledge in different aspects of airport security. The TSA promised to support
the efforts of the present administration to enhance airport security and
improve the operational performance and intelligence of security agents working
in the air transport sector. The minister and his team also inspected the
Transportation Security Operations Center (TSOC) in the state of Virginia.
“On the commercial and private sector investment side, the minister also met with operators in the industry. In Montreal, Canada, he met with different teams from Air Canada and Bombardier and while in the US, he discussed extensively with Boeing.
“On the commercial and private sector investment side, the minister also met with operators in the industry. In Montreal, Canada, he met with different teams from Air Canada and Bombardier and while in the US, he discussed extensively with Boeing.
“During
these meetings, economic regulatory and operational issues relating to the
aviation sector were discussed and the national carrier project was also
mentioned,” he said.
Chidoka and
his team also held technical meetings with the World Bank Transport Group where
the previous World Bank supported- programmes and the status of implementation
were reviewed.
The team
from the World Bank reportedly made a strong case for Nigeria given its
critical size, to lead the liberalisation of air transport in West Africa and
take full advantage of open sky agreements with major regions such as the
European Union.
Chidoka was
accompanied on the trip by the acting Director-General, the Nigerian Civil
Aviation Authority (NCAA), Benedict Adeyileka, Director of Air Transport
Management in the Federal Ministry of Aviation and Senior Special Assistant to
the President on Aviation reforms.
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Sir, you are the best ever appointed by our current and past presidents in history. Your handling of road safety corps is s testimony and surely, you will revamp the aviation sector
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