As the aviation sector in Nigeria gets set to commence domestic operations on July 8th, 2020, data released by Civil Aviation Authority in the country shows that only two airlines, Arik Air and Overland Airways fully met all the indices set by the regulatory agency.
Data released by the agency while hosting the third edition of zoom meeting since the closure of the airspace, however revealed that airlines in the sector had reached 91% in their level of preparedness for the commencement of domestic service. The NCAA had held the meeting to intimate operators with the level of preparedness of each player in the aviation eco system in the country.
Speaking during a virtual meeting with the Theme: COVID-19: Civil Aviation Regulation in Africa, Director-General, NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu said to avoid errors or mistakes in the restart of domestic flights, it must ensure the protocols developed in conjunction with the World Health Organisation, Local health authorities and the Africa Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC) were implemented throughout the Aviation ecosystem.
He warned all the operators; airlines, airports, air navigation service provider, weather report providers, airport health and aviation security that, all must satisfy stipulated standard of performance and that the announced opening date for flight resumption is sacrosanct only to those who fully complied with the regulation and advisories from, International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO, International Air Transport Association, IATA, World Health Organization, WHO, as they were being dispense by the NCAA.
The DG also noted that the airport was a critical component of the aviation ecosystem which acts as a filter of passengers on health protocols, security and others, adding that if anything was allowed into the aircraft it could be a disaster for the industry.
Captain Nuhu stated that airports must be on the right path and any gaps noticed when Lagos and Abuja airports reopen next week will quickly be fixed before others airports follow.
The NCAA stressed that protocols and guidelines have been given to every sector of the Industry to comply with, which covers all the different functions; technical, financial and health protocols as only those who have met these requirements have been authorised to resume.
