NATCA seeks activation of NAVAIDS
BY Chukwuemeke Iwelunmo
The Nigeria Air Traffic Controllers Association NATCA has called on Minister of Aviation, as a matter of urgency and in order to improve safety and aerodrome capacity at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, direct NAMA and FAAN to provide all the required visual and navigational facilities for the activation of approaches and landing on Runway 36 Left and 36 Right;
In a communique issued at the end of its 48th annual General meeting in Kano, the body said in view of the huge investment made in the implementation of Performance-Based Navigation, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority should mandate the carriage of required avionics systems by Nigerian airlines to maximize the benefits of the transition from ground-based to satellite based navigation system.
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It also urged the Ministry of Aviation and relevant Agencies to facilitate the rehabilitation, reconstruction and the modernization of Control Towers nationwide, the Central Taxiway in Lagos, as well as Runway and Approach lighting systems nationwide, for enhanced safety and efficiency of flight operations;
The communiqué signed by Messrs Abayomi Agoro and Felix Agbonlahor, President and Secretary respectively, it called on the Federal Government to take urgent steps to integrate the National Air Navigation Plan and National Aviation System Block Upgrade Plan (ASBU) into the National Development Plan in compliance with the requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization;
Parts of the communique reads “The Federal Government is kindly enjoined to as a matter of safety and efficiency, review the existing VIP Flight Movement procedures in line with international best practices to alleviate the severe delays and additional cost to commercial and other airspace users attributable to these VIP Movements.
The Federal Government should, without further delay, release the Scheme of Service of Air Traffic Control Cadre that had been with government for review since 2008. In the same vein, the Association calls on Federal Government to accede to the age-long request to create dedicated Grading System and Salary Structure for Air Traffic Controllers to reduce stagnation under the conventional grading system to be in conformity with international best practices as it is for Medical Doctors and University Lecturers.”
According to NATCA, in view of the severe shortage of Air Traffic Controllers in the face of increasing development of new airports, it urged the government to urgently review, as an interim measure, the retirement age for Air Traffic Controllers to 65 years irrespective of length of service and to prevail on all employers of ATCOs to ensure that adequate consideration was given to her staff training and disposition for effective Air Traffic Management Service given the human factor implications as well as the impact of deficient Air Traffic Management Tools on the provision of safe Air Navigation Service.
It further demanded the ministry of aviation to directs all employers of ATCOs to ensure that all Air Traffic Controllers that were trained must proceed on the relevant on the job training OJT for rating within two years of completing any major training in order to ensure that the relevance and impacts of such training were not degraded or lost due to time.
It finally urged Nigerian Airspace Management Agency to immediately implement the long-awaited National Health Insurance Scheme for her employees as a means of addressing perennial health challenges bedevilling the lives and wellbeing of staff and families.
