Asaba incident: NCAA bans pilots from flying in Nigeria's airspace

 

Asaba incident: NCAA bans pilots from flying in Nigeria's airspace 

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has banned from flying in the Nigerian airspace, two pilots that commanded the Bombardier  Challenger aircraft that landed on the roadway at Issele Uku , near the Asaba Airport in Delta State.

Its Director General, Captain Chris Najomo disclosed this on Wednesday, while speaking on efforts to ensure compliance with standards and regulatory requirements at the Aviation Business Summit and Expo in Lagos.

Najomo expressed concerns that  as a pilot of over 45 years, it is disturbing that a pilot will mistake a roadway for an airport runway.

He said what the pilot ought to have done, if he could not locate the runway , was  to make a turn around. 

He said besides suspending the two pilots, with the foreign pilot sent to his country, relevant security agencies including the NCAA have continued with the in going investigation into the infraction.

Najomo said the permit for non - commercial flight for the operator of the aircraft has also been suspended and the aircraft still grounded.

The NCAA expressed concern over the decision of the pilots to take off, without the required permission after the incident to Lagos, where it was eventually grounded.

Najomo said: "Well, the investigation is still ongoing. The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau has handed the investigation to the NCAA  and we are doing our own investigation as we speak, the aircraft is grounded. The permit for non commercial light  is suspended.

"And the pilots are suspended from flying in this airspace until we come up with our own investigation. This is  because me as a pilot for forty five years  cannot see a road and land on the road. So we'll look at the other reasons why's this happened.  We  will look at the other motives, too. The DSS  got involved and they are investigating until those investigation comes out. It remains like that."