Yemisi Izuora
The Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika has commended the collaborative effort of aviation agencies that resulted in the issuance of an aerodrome certificate to the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
Sirika while receiving the certificate from the Managing Director of FAAN, Engr Saleh Dunoma, noted that the issuance of this certificate is a testimony to the strong commitment of the Federal Government of Nigeria to safety and security at airports across the nation.
It will be recalled that the Director General of NCAA, Capt Usman Mouktar presented the certificate to the Authority at a presentation ceremony, held on Monday, 18th September, 2017, at the headquarters of NCAA.
The DG of the regulatory agency, while speaking at the ceremony noted that the event is historic, as for the first time in the history of aviation in Nigeria, an aerodrome certificate of operational safety will be issued to an airport, in line with the conventions of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
Stating further that the successful completion of the certification exercise was contingent on the team work involving seasoned officials from FAAN, NCAA, the certification team and other stakeholders, the DG advised FAAN to not only ensure total compliance with all operational standards, in other to ensure sustainability of the certification, but also gear up to certify other airports in Nigeria.
In his speech, NCAA’s Director of Aerodromes and Airspace Standards, Mr Odunowo Mohammed Tayyib noted that there are five key phases to the certification of any airport, which are; expression of interest by an intending applicant for an aerodrome certificate, assessment of the formal application including evaluation of Aerodrome Manual, assessment of the aerodrome facilities and equipment, issuance or refusal of an aerodrome certificate and publication of the certified status of an aerodrome and the required details in the AIP.
Odunowo noted with joy that the Murtala Muhammed Airport has scaled all the hurdles and consequently, the issuance/presentation of the certificate.
The event climaxed with the presentation of the certificate to the Managing Director of FAAN, Engr Saleh Dunoma by the Director General of NCAA, Captain Usman Mouktar.
The Managing Director of FAAN in his acceptance speech, thanked the NCAA, MMA Management, the Airlines and the Certification team for their cooperation, towards making the entire process a success.
Expressing his delight at this achievement, he noted that lots of time and resources has been put into the process and the experiences gathered will surely assist in speeding up the certification process of other airports in Nigeria.
Stating that the Authority will cherish the certificate and do everything possible to sustain it, he noted that airline operators will be the ultimate beneficiaries of the process.
In his final words, Engr Dunoma reassured the DG, NCAA that the Authority will not only ensure the sustainance of this certificate, but will also work very hard to collect more certificates from the regulatory agency.