NCAA Suspends Azman Air’s Operating License

Azman Airlines has failed the renewal audits of its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

With this, the regulatory agency has suspended indefinitely the operating license of the airline.

AOC is an aviation safety instrument that authorises an airline operator to carry out specified commercial air transport operations. The document issued to Azman Air allowed it to operate as a passenger, cargo, scheduled and charter flight operator. The certificate is renewed every two years in Nigeria by the NCAA.

This development has however led to massive chaos at the nation’s airports as passengers who had hitherto booked with the airline to travel to various destinations are currently stranded.

A source close to NCAA confided to newsmen morning that the AOC of the airline had expired in the first quarter of this year and the regulatory agency through its inspectors had been working with the airline for the renewal process, which the airline consistently failed.

It was also gathered that before the regulatory agency suspended the operating license of the airline, the Directorate of Air Transport Regulation (DATR), a department in NCAA, had written a reminder letter to the management of the airline and issued it 30 days ultimatum to comply with the industry standards, but failed.

At the Murtala Muhammed Airport Two (MMA2), Lagos Airport, passengers of the airline were stranded as they could not fly to their destinations with the airline as planned. Some of the passengers were seen at the MMA2 making frantic efforts to purchase air tickets of another airline in order to continue with their journey as planned, while others insisted on getting a refund from the airline’s counter staff, but failed.

Apart from Lagos, it was also gathered that hundreds of passengers of the airline were stranded in Abuja, Kano and Kaduna airports.

When the Chairman of the airline, Abdulmunaf Sarina, was contacted for comments, he did not respond to calls as well as a text message sent to his mobile phone.

September 15, 2022