Nigeria Air Operation Delayed For Another Four Months, Reasons Revealed

Nigeria Air is set to receive the needed Air Transport Licence (ATL) from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), but the national carrier won’t start operation in the next four months.

The ATL is expected to be issued on Monday, but Nigeria Air will have to wait for over three months before obtaining the Airline Operator’s Certificate (AOC), required to start flying across the country’s airspace.

It was gathered that the delay is due to NCAA’s AOC process, which involves three phases, with the first being the pre-application process, which takes a week, and includes the appointment of a team to review and certify statement of intent, formal application, as well as regulatory requirements, and other related issues.

The stage two consist covers a period of two weeks, as the NCAA team take possession of personal and career details belonging to management of Nigeria Air, including other requested documents, while the final phase will take three months for the evaluation of the documents submitted, to ensure they comply with regulations and aviation operating practices.

“NCAA is expected to make the presentation of the licence to the interim management of Nigeria Air today, Monday, June 6, 2022 without any delay and the AOC, which is the most important will come in few months.” A source in NCAA told Nairametrics.

She further explained that, “The process was delayed because NCAA had to ensure protocols and necessary requirements or conditions are met. Sentiments are not required in approving the air worthiness of airlines, as it is one of the most sensitive and delicate sector in the economy. We cannot afford any mistake because we are dealing with lives here.”

The Nigeria Air was initially set to commence operation in April 2022, according to the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, however, it suffered setback in 2018, after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) suspended it over disagreement on funding.