Page 45 - World Airnews Magazine December 2019 Edition

AFRICA AFRICA
NEWS NEWS

Compiled by Albinus Chiedu

side (non-aeronautical sources of revenue).” from air accident reports released by the that is part of our strategy today” he said.

He said that results from the corridors Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), the Mendis said the most important cor-

of air transport research show that airport objectives of promoting air safety cannot porate social responsibility from AWA’s
expansion and growth is in favour of private be actualised. perspective, is to make air travel more ac-

equity injection and management of air- Nigeria’s former representative at the Afri- cessible and affordable to more and more

ports are said to be more efficient under the can Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC), Fidelis people in the sub-region.

BLAISE DIAGNE AEROPORT private sector. Onyeyiri stated this at the quarterly business “When you look at the safety records of

TO EXPAND The legislator proposed the unbundling breakfast meeting of the Aviation Safety travelling by road in Nigeria and Ghana,

Round Table Initiative (ASRTI) held in Lagos.
of FAAN to improve performance of the Onyeyiri said the prevailing practice of the safest thing you can do for someone is

Director General Blaise Diagne Aeroport airports under privatisation. publishing air accidents without any fol- to give him the ability to travel safely and

value his time.

Dakar, Xavier Mary has said the company Chief executive officer of Ropeways low-up investigation reports or emphasis of

plans to expand the airport terminal Nigeria Ltd, Dapo Olumide called on the safety recommendations would not help to “If someone is coming from Tamale to

following an upsurge in traffic. Nigerian airspace management agency to prevent a re-occurrence. Accra for instance, the bus takes 12 to 14

hours and there have been so many crash-
reduce over-flight charges in order to enable

In an exclusive interview with World Onyeyiri was sacked as director general es. Every day, you read of bus crashes. But

Airnews, Mary said the airport recorded more airlines overfly Nigeria’s airspace and of Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) if you take a flight, it takes one hour and

make more money for developing airports

10% traffic growth in 2018 and hoped to infrastructure. shortly after the Bellview air crash of you will make it here safely.

have a five or six percent growth this year. October 22, 2005 and Sosoliso airlines “That is the best thing you can do; build

He said the airport is becoming too small to In his remarks, president of Aviation Safe- crash of December 10, 2005 said, “We people’s confidence in air travel and give

cater for three million passengers per year. Director general of Blaise Diagne ty Round Table Initiative or ASRTI Gbenga have to break out of the circuit of looking them accessibility to enable them do
lowo appealed to the leadership to show
“I want to increase my traffic. We want to aeroport, Dakar, Xavier Mary more commitment and willingness towards for culprits. The goal of accident inves- business in our country, visit their families

give our best to the customers, the passen- improving airport infrastructure. tigation is accident prevention. Actions and so forth. That is the kind of CSR better

gers and also the airlines. Customers are the must therefore be taken after the release than any donations or any other thing you

people that pay us money. So, we have to do of accident reports so that the relevant can ever offer. I genuinely think that our

our best to ensure that everybody is happy. airports have benefitted from this pro- safety recommendations can be examined entire model is a community based mod-

We also have to do our best to promote the gramme and as part of the capacity building and implemented.” el,” said Mendis.

destination and to create a safe and secure process on the African continent, more and

environment for businessmen to come to more ACI certified African experts are being
Senegal. This is our responsibility,” he said. used as assessors during APEX reviews.”
FUNDING NIGERIAN AIRPORTS AIRCRAFT ACQUISITION
INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING

Methods to improve the state of airport Air Cote D’Ivoire has commenced discus- AWA WILL EMERGE BLIND SPOTS IN THE AIRSPACE
infrastructure across Nigeria formed sions with the African Development Bank

part of discussions at a colloquium held about possible bank support for financing Africa World Airlines (AWA) based in Accra,

APEX GRADUATES PROMISE TO RETURN recently in Lagos. its intended aircraft acquisition. Ghana has opened its ninth route in less Chief executive officer Nigerian Airspace

SUSPENDED ROUTES Chairman house of representatives com- AfDB senior transport engineer Patrick Tamba than six years and has remained profitable Management Agency (NAMA) Fola

Akinkuotu expressed optimism that the
Thirteen aviation safety professionals mittee on aviation Nnolim Nnaji suggested Musa said the bank had developed a frame- for four years. challenge of radio blind spots in some parts

from West Africa have graduated from the Arik Air has resumed flights to Owerri – a in his presentation at the event that the work and guidelines document with the aim of Airline chief operating officer Sean Men- of the nation’s upper airspace would soon

APEX Safety Assessor Training Programme destination which it initially suspended. remittances from internally generated easing access to finance for African airlines. dis said the goal of the airline is to become be history.

conducted by the Airports Council revenues of the airport authority should be He said the framework was developed the dominant carrier initially in Ghana, and This, as the ongoing deployment of VSAT

Airline chief executive officer Roy Ileg-

International (ACI). bodu said, “We made a promise to our retained for the development of airports through collaborative approach with major then, throughout the West African region. network and VHF radio systems, is yielding

The graduates were presented with the esteemed customers that we will return to infrastructure. African aviation stakeholders and is consis- “We are not going to try to do this in one positive results.

certificates of graduation at the recent 28th the routes that were suspended earlier in “The 25% remittance from Federal tent with AfDB’s 10-year strategy. year or two years. We are going to have slow

ACI annual general assembly, conference the year and our resumption of flights to Airports Authority of Nigeria should be and steady growth. We like to think that NAMA recently completed the installa-

and exhibition held at Kempinski Hotel in Warri and now Owerri is a promise kept.” stopped. Government should create a con- we are now at a position where people are tion of a VSAT station at the Jos airport in

Accra, Ghana. The airline said it will return to other sus- solidated account where this money will be realizing what we can bring to them in terms Plateau State and integrated the VHF radio
into the network in that sector.
The graduates included safety and paid. From there we set up a 10-year rolling of value as a regional partner. That is what

environmental officers, airside operations pended destinations as well as open more plan on how to develop airports infrastruc- we have been able to achieve in terms of Akinkuotu said the installation of the
routes to cope with passengers demands.
officers, aerodrome fire officers and Arik Air suspended flights to Owerri early ture instead of government taking this profitability. And of course, with infrastruc- VSAT stations will be done at 26 airports

while the VHF radios will be installed

rescue officers. 2019 due to operational problems and since money. The money is supposed to be used ture of the new airport in Accra, it is going to at 14 strategic remote sites to finally

Secretary General of ACI, Ali Tounsi said, then, passengers have been yearning to re- to develop airports infrastructure,” he said. AIR ACCIDENT REPORTS CAN help realise the vision of making Accra the eliminate radio blind spots in the upper

“The APEX Safety Assessor Training pro- turn, said Banji Ola, the airline’s spokesman. Nnaji said that Nigeria was yet to exploit PROMOTE AIR SAFETY primary West African aviation hub.” airways segment of the entire Nigerian

gramme was set up primarily to meet industry “up to 10% of the possible non-aeronautical Mendis said the airline is exploiting the ad- airspace. Q

demands to enhance the level of safety at Services to Warri resumed in September. revenues because our airports are not yet vantage of partnerships to pursue its vision.

airports by conducting peer reviews between developed to the level of harnessing the Until emphasis is given to the imple- “To this extent, we are partners with SAA,

member airports. To date, around 50 African revenue potentials available on the land mentation of relevant recommendations Emirates, Qatar, Ethiopian and others. So,
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