MIXED reactions have continued to trail the recent outcome of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) safety audit on Nigeria’s aviation sector.
At the end of the audit, Nigeria scored 70 percent as against the 75 percent regarded as a pass mark in the sector.
Commenting on the 70 percent score, a member of Aviation Round Table and a former military commandant of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Group Captain John Ojikutu, retired, attributed the low grade scored by Nigeria to the deficiencies of some airports.
Ojikutu who argued that any airport that is operating lower than the standards of its approved programme deserves to be grounded’ however lamented how the many years of neglect in the enforcement of the Safety and Security Regulations has affected the present status of the airports across the country.
According to Ojikutu “Seriously, for the NCAA to come up now and immediately after the ICAO Audits, I believe the state of the airports are the reasons for the low grade it scored during the last Audit. If any airport is operating lower than the standards of its approved programme, it is necessary for the airports to be grounded the same manner an airline is grounded. What we are seeing happening is the many years of neglect in the enforcement of the Safety and Security Regulations on the government operators services and programmes. One major reason I am not in support of the so callednational carrier.
“To the best of my knowledge, only Lagos and Abuja airports are certified and the remaining 19 airports are not: but on whose statutory authority are these other ones operating? Institutional Corruption. Too many concessions are given to the government operators but not that much for the private operators.
“You may have a Driver’s Licence and your vehicle has one too but not having a VIO certificate put your vehicle out for operation. What are the NCAA checklist requirements for airports to be certified are necessary to know? Runways/Taxiways and their lightnings are necessary: Runway Approach Safe Areas and lightnings: Perimeter/Security Fences. Aerodrome Control Services. All these must have adequate skilled manpower for their management, services and maintenance.
The aviation security expert argued that the audits of airports should normally be periodically and yearly added that audit should not only be conducted on airlines but for the airports and the Allied Services like the ground handlers, Fuel marketers and the catering services.
“Like the airlines, the airports need certification before they are put into operations but how many of them are certified? What is the consequence on the insurance of the airlines in the event of accident in any airport that is yet to be certified? Before upgrading, how many airports are certified by the NCAA?”
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