Remove NCAA from civil service structure to attract experienced professionals — Airlines operators tell Senate

The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) has advised that, as apex aviation regulatory body, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) deserves attractive and competitive emoluments to enable them perform their oversight functions effectively.

According to AON, the agency would only be able to perform such a role, if it attracts the right personnel with sound technical know-how.

The airline operators added that, to attract these special skills, it must be willing to offer this personnel better pay packages.

The professional body, therefore, called on the federal government to remove the NCAA from the civil service structure to enable the agency to attract the right personnel in order to safeguard the aviation industry.

AON made the call in a letter it wrote to the Senate on January 19, 2022, and addressed to the Senate President, Senator Ahmed Lawan and explained that the request was of immediate safety concern about the aviation industry.

In the letter signed by its President, Alhaji Abdulmunaf Yunusa Salina, AON stated that NCAA was established to regulate the aviation industry and implement government policies in the industry and also enforce the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) safety standards and recommended practices to ensure that the operators in the industry met the safety requirements.

“In order to effectively carry out its important duties as highlighted above, the NCAA needs to attract and engage a team of technically sound professionals in virtually every field of aviation, notably flight operations, engineering, safety inspectors, dispatchers, cabin executives among others, so as to be able to conduct regular oversight of the industry.

“Sir, it is however sad to note that there is a growing level of deficiency today within the NCAA in the area of human capacity, due to its inability to attract and retain experienced industry professionals as a result of its inadequate recruitment and salary regime compared to the offers they get from working for the airlines,” AON said.

The operators told the Senate that because of this situation, many Inspectors are leaving the NCAA and the few that remain are not well-motivated and hardly enough to meet the requirements of the industry, adding that the young personnel that are in the agency currently do not have the required experience.

AON stressed that this portends immediate danger to flight safety and flight operations, as the few hands remaining are either too old and tired or are too inexperienced to undertake proper and adequate oversight functions over airlines’ operations.

The operators noted that no country allows its Civil Aviation Authority salaries to be determined by civil service rules.

“The safety challenges are real and should be addressed through legislation for the good of the industry and safety of the lives of the flying public.