Another airline, First Nation Airlines, has suspended its
operations, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has said. This happened less
than 24 hours after Aero Contractors Airlines, Nigeria’s second largest
commercial carrier, announced an indefinite suspension of its scheduled flight
services and its staff with effect from Thursday, September 1, 2016.
The Director-General of the NCAA, Capt. Muhtar Usman,
explained that the decision was taken in order to ensure that the airline
carried out the required maintenance of its aircraft.
Usman, however, refuted claims that some of the
domestic airlines were winding down their operations regardless of the fact
that they had suspended flight services.
In a statement issued by the NCAA on Thursday and signed by
its DG, it said, “The First Nation Airlines on its part is in the middle of an
Engine Replacement Programme for one of its aircrafts. Another aircraft is due
for mandatory maintenance as allowed by the regulatory authority.
“In these circumstances, these airlines clearly cannot
continue to undertake schedule operations, hence the inevitable recourse to
self regulatory suspension.”
Usman insisted that the domestic carriers had not wound down
their operations, but were “merely suspending their operations temporarily to
enable them undertake certain operational overhaul and strengthen their overall
operational outlay.”
0 Comments