By Louis Ibah
The United States Federal Aviation Administration (US FAA) is to commence the certification of the Nigerian aviation industry on August 21, 2017, says the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
Speaking during a briefing at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, the spokesman for NCAA, Mr. Sam Adurogboye, stated that a four-man US FAA team is due to arrive the country this month to access the country’s aviation industry in eight critical areas.
He listed the eight critical areas to include legislation, regulation, organisation, technical staff, quality and training, technical guidance tools, licensing, certification approval, continuous surveillance, and resolution of safety concerns.
Adurogboye said the team, which comprises Louis Alvarez, the leader, LP Vanstory, operational specialist, Benjamin Garrido, airworthiness specialist and Jeffrey Klang, attorney, will also visit the maintenance facilities of some local airlines.
He said the Nigerian regulatory body is working assiduously to get the country ready for the exercise and that it would complete the latest International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) checklist and return completed form to the US FAA ahead of the audit team’s arrival.
He expressed the optimism that the country would scale through the exercise and quoted the NCAA Director General, Capt. Muhtar Usman, as having assured the Federal Government and Nigerian stakeholders in the aviation industry that the country would acquit itself successfully as usual in the US FAA audit.
He said the DG has activated the NCAA standing audit team, which has since swung into action.
The US FAA last audited the Nigeria aviation industry in 2014. The audit is a major requirement for direct flight operations between Nigeria and the USA.