Nigeria Content Online

Following
the recent air mishap and “fraudulent” text messages from unknown
persons faulting the air worthiness of Aero Contractors,the Nigerian
Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) over the weekend disclosed that the
airline is still qualified to carry on with its regular flight
operations.

Dispelling fears of
possible compromise in the safety of the carrier’s fleet, the
regulatory agency disclosed that it would not hesitate to ground the
airline should there be failing standards in the carrier’s flight
operations.

“That they are
flying should tell people that they are certified to do so; otherwise
their operations would have been grounded,” said Sam Adurogboye, media
head for the civil aviation authority.

Admitting that the
authority was aware of the recent incident involving the airline, Mr.
Adurogboye said that “Aero is fit to continue its operations.” Earlier,
Aero in a statement, disclosed that the regulatory agency gave it a
“clean bill” following a check on the carrier’s aircraft by engineers
from the authority.

Last week, a viral
text message condemning the air worthiness of two aircraft belonging to
Aero Contractors was sent to some passengers and media houses, alleging
that some officials of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN)
are aware of the airline’s degenerating safety standards.

Deceitful texts

The development,
which came after the carrier’s Boeing 737 aircraft had a technical
fault resulting in the emission of smoke in the cabin that scared
passengers and saw some of the travellers sustaining injuries, is
criticized by the carrier as being “the handiwork of disgruntled
competitors who are threatened by the success of the airline over the
last few months.”

When contacted,
however, Akin Olukunle,spokesman for the Federal Airports Authority of
Nigeria (FAAN) disclosed that no official of the authority will speak
to anyone on issues pertaining the air worthiness of an airline, adding
that the text message was “deceitful.” “Whoever said he spoke to us is
not telling the truth,because it is not the duty of FAAN to comment on
matters affecting an airline,it is the regulatory agency that does
that,” he said.

On the issue of the air mishap, Aero disclosed that it is a globally
accepted rule in airline operations that no flight operation can be
conducted when a warning signal is detected, adding that it will not be
deterred by any blackmail from any source about its fleet airworthiness.