January 02, (THEWILL) – On Monday, March 16, 2020, Captain Musa Nuhu formally took over as the seventh substantive Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), following his appointment on October 23, 2019, and eventual confirmation by the Senate.
The NCAA is the regulatory body for aviation in Nigeria. It became autonomous after the Civil Aviation Act 2006 was passed into law by the National Assembly and assented to by the president. The Act empowers the Authority to regulate aviation safety without political interference, and oversee the airports, airspace and meteorological services.
The aviation industry is a highly regulated one, making the CAA of any country pivotal to the safety of flight operations within and outside their airspace.
After 20 months at the helm, operators in the aviation sector believe that Captain Nuhu has sanitised the system and raised the bar in the agency’s regulatory roles. This is expected to be improved when the National Assembly passes the amendments to the Civil Aviation Act.
Regulation
Recent events in the aviation industry have put the agency in the spotlight, with a large percentage of stakeholders scoring the current NCAA management high in terms of regulations.
Operators who acquired the Air Operators Certificate (AOC) under Nuhu’s tenure have attested to the fact that the NCAA is up and regulating both airlines and other stakeholders in the industry.
On February 1, 2021, the Nuhu-led agency granted its first AOC to United Nigeria Airlines after a rigorous process that included test flights. The AOC is valid till January 31, 2023.
Relaying his experience, the Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines, High Chief Okonkwo, commended the NCAA for the diligence and due process adopted in issuing them their AOC.
Okonkwo said, “Within this period, NCAA has been very diligent in the processing of AOCs. We are happy and grateful to God that we were able to scale through this very strict and stringent process. Today, we are flying.”
Speaking on the dynamics of civil aviation regulations under Captain Nuhu, renowned aviation trainer and CEO of Westlink Airlines, Captain Ibrahim Mshelia, said the aviation process is one of the most regulated industries in the world, adding that it cannot be overregulated.
The airline operator noted that the current regulations need more operators’ voices because when they were made, some of them were made in a hurry to enable the approval of certain requirements.
Mshelia said, “So, aviation in itself needs to be regulated the way it is; whether there are lacunas here and there.”
He said there was no place in the world where you could find anybody who liked the CAA.
Enforcement
Part of Captain Nuhu’s achievement is his strict adherence to the rules of the industry. In March, 2021, under the eagle eyes of the regulator, the NCAA, pursuant to Section 35 (2) of the Civil Aviation Act 2006 and Part 1.3.3.3 (A) of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs) 2015, suspended the operations of all the Boeing 737 Aircraft in the fleet of Azman Air Services Limited, with effect from March 15, 2021.
The suspension followed a series of incidents involving Azman Air’s Boeing 737 aircraft. The NCAA then conducted an audit of the airline to determine the root cause(s) of the incidents, and recommend corrective actions to forestall a re-occurrence.
Since then, the safety compliance of virtually all airlines has improved significantly.
On the global stage, the NCAA boss resolved five cases at the Cape Town Convention on Mobile Equipment, thus creating international confidence in the oversight function of the NCAA.
Administration
In September 2020, the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, with the help of the Nuhu-led board successfully restructured the NCAA as part of the efforts geared toward streamlining government agencies.
Under the restructuring midwifed by Nuhu, the Consumer Protection Directorate (CPD) was merged with the Directorate of Air Transport Regulations (DATR); the Directorate of General Aviation (DGA) was merged with the Directorate of; and the Directorate of Operations and Training (DOT) was merged with Licensing.
However, three directorates—the Directorate of Aerodrome and Airspace Standards (DAAS), the Directorate of Human Resource and Administration (DHR&A), the and Directorate of Finance—were retained.
With these positive changes recorded in just one year and half of his administration, there is no doubt that Captain Nuhu is fully prepared to take Nigeria’s aviation industry to the next level and ultimately ensure safety, which is the backbone of aviation worldwide.
He initiated and completed movement into the NCAA corporate headquarters in Abuja and strengthened and equipped five regional offices to bring more efficient and friendly services closer to stakeholders. Furthermore, the agency is in the process of acquiring EMPIC Regulatory Equipment for the automation and digitisation of NCAA processes for improved and friendly services.
About the Author
Anthony Awunor, is a business correspondent who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics (UNILAG). He is also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria Kaduna State. He lives in Lagos.
