The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority ( NCAA) has threatened to sanction airline operators and flights crew who allow unauthorised personnel into the cockpit during flight operations.
The Director-General, NCAA, Capt. Musa Nuhu, issued the
warning in a letter: NCAA/ DG/ AIR/1/11/324 dated Oct. 25 and addressed to
accountable managers in Lagos on Wednesday.
Nuhu decried the worrisome trend and vowed to take action
stressing the importance of the aircraft cockpit and staring that it was a
sterile working environment for the pilots.
“It has been brought to the notice of the authority of a
worrisome development in which passengers are admitted into the flight deck
(cockpit) especially on commercial air transport flights.
”Aircraft flight decks are designated sterile working
environment and the presence of unauthorised persons is both a distraction to
safe flight operations and a potential security.
“In addition, it is a violation of Nigeria Civil Aviation
Regulations ( NCARs) 8.5.1.12 and 8.5.1.13.
”All operators and flight crews are hereby warned to desist
from admitting unauthorised persons into the cockpit during all phases of
flight operations with immediate effect,” he said.
The director general warned that any violation of
non-compliance with the directive would result in the imposition of applicable
sanctions on both operators and flight crew.
Meanwhile, the Chairman and CEO of Air Peace, Allen Onyema,
has called on the federal government to upwardly review the salaries of NCAA
personnel.
Onyema made the call at the 2021 Brazil-Nigeria Aviation and
Defence Trade Forum 2021 organised by the Embassy of Brazil.
In a statement signed by Air Peace spokesman, Stanley Olisa
and made available to newsmen yesterday, Onyema stressed that the salary review
is needed for the aviation regulatory body to attract and retain the best
talents with the requisite experience and qualifications to discharge their
oversight responsibilities efficiently.
He stated that the agency was not able to poach top talents
in the industry because its salary structure is not competitive, adding that
the federal government should remove the NCAA from the civil service salary
structure.
Onyema remarked that some of the technical personnel working
in the agency are due for retirement and tired but still in service because
NCAA cannot afford to hire quality staff to replace them due to relatively poor
remuneration.
"Their salaries should be upwardly reviewed to match
the airlines' salary structure, as nobody wants to go there to work but they
(current staff) are doing their best, which is very commendable. This is a
patriotic call", Onyema said.
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