RECENTLY, the Director, Airworthiness Standards of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Gbalohan Abatan, indicated that an incident of contamination was discoverd after a domestic aircraft refuelled in Lagos State. It was discovered that the tank of the aircraft was filled with water while it was scheduled to take off. An apparently alarmed Abatan exclaimed: “Imagine what would have happened with the aircraft in the air; the two engines would have shut down and the aircraft would have dropped from the air like a stone.” Previously, on July 7, an incident of Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) shutdown due to heavy water contamination had been reported in Yola, Adamawa State. After the discovery, the NCAA dispatched a team of investigators to Lagos, Kano and Abuja where the aircraft had refuelled prior to the incident. Stakeholders were stunned when a video emerged of a Boeing B737-300 with the registration number 5N-MHM, publicly discharging water from its fuel tanks. The incident caused apprehension and disbelief.
In a swift reaction, the Director General of the NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu, said his agency was investigating three oil marketing companies that the airline had sourced aviation fuel from, while the aircraft was immediately grounded. He declared: “We will collaborate with the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to ensure it does not happen again. We want to make sure that the marketers meet our regulations in supplying their products to the airlines.” According to him, it is the responsibility of the flight crew to inspect the fuel taken by an aircraft to make sure that it is not contaminated, and so the flight crew and airline would be held responsible if problems arose. The NCAA grounded the Max Air plane to save lives, knowing that contaminated fuel could damage aircraft engine. The airline, on its part, disclosed the supplier of the contaminated fuel but the said company denied the allegation. The denial brought into bold relief the terrible incident that occured on April 28 when an incident of APU shutdown due to fuel contamination occurred in Abuja, and on April 30 when an incident of in-flight engine failure owing to issues of fuel filter bypass reportedly occurred also in Abuja.
To be sure, the contamination of aviation fuel is not a new phenomenon in the country. Two years ago, an Aero Contractors plane refueled in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on its way to Lagos. However, when the pilot decided to check the tank, he found that the fuel was contaminated with water. Truth be told, the contaminated fuel phenomenon is a complete aberration; it compromises the safety of travellers. Be it on land, sea or air, safety must never be compromised under any guise. Given the huge risks associated with air travel, safety measures are constantly being fine-tuned in these modern times to inspire public confidence. That is why the rising cases of contaminated aviation fuel in Nigeria’s aviation industry are so disturbing. The implications for all stakeholders, including airline operators and passengers, are quite dire. According to experts, the inherent risks in contaminated aviation fuel include system corrosion, clogging of fuel filtration components, failure of aircraft fuel system instrumentation, and possible obstruction of fuel supply to the engine during flights. These issues should inspire drastic changes in the aviation sector.
All stakeholders should partner the regulatory agencies to arrest the ugly trend before it completely erodes public confidence in the industry. The NCAA and the NMDPRA should liaise with other players and stakeholders to arrest the incidence of contaminated fuel. They should embrace enhanced vigilance. Officials found to be compromising standards should be dealt with in the strictest possible form provided by the laws of the land. They should be treated like the common crminals that they are. The decision by the authorities to probe the recent incidents is in order, but the exercise should be thorough, the outcome made public, and the recommendations implemented without compromise. A comprehensive audit of the marketers of Jet A1 fuel should be carried out to guarantee compliance with the Standard Operational Procedures (SOP).
Although the alleged supplier fingered by Max Air has denied the charge, the fuel certainly originated from somewhere within the country for it to have been procured and used by the airline. Therefore, the matter should be properly investigated and not covered up regardless of whoever is involved. This cannot be too difficult if the government and the concerned authorities are serious about getting to the truth of the issue. We believe that this is a responsibility they owe themselves and the country to guarantee safety in the aviation sector. There should be severe consequences for fraud.
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