The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has provided clarification on the reasons for Nigeria’s loss of Category 1 Status, which resulted in Nigerian airlines being disqualified from operating flights to the United States.
A statement released in Abuja by the Acting Director General of Civil Aviation, Capt. Chris Najomo, outlined the reasons behind this development.
Najomo stated that, like many other countries, Nigeria must successfully complete the International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) Programme and attain Category 1 status for its airlines to be permitted to operate flights to the U.S.
“The attention of the NCAA has again been drawn to a publication about the purported ban on Nigerian airlines by the United States. Due to the wrong impression such news could create, it has become expedient that we put this report in its proper perspective.
“Upon attaining Category 1, Nigerian airlines would be permitted to operate Nigerian registered aircraft and dry-leased foreign registered aircraft into the United States, in line with the existing Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA),” Najomo said.
According to Najomo, Nigeria first achieved Category 1 in August 2010. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) conducted another safety assessment of Nigeria in 2014.
Najomo noted that a further safety assessment occurred in 2017, after which Nigeria maintained its Category 1 status.
The head of the NCAA mentioned that starting from Sept. 2022, the US FAA removed Category 1 countries that did not have a domestic operator providing service to the U.S. or carrying the airline code of a U.S. operator within two years from the list.
“Also removed from the Category 1 list were countries where the FAA was not providing technical assistance, based on identified areas of non-compliance to international standards for safety oversight.
“No Nigerian operator has provided service into the United States using a Nigerian registered aircraft within the two years preceding September 2022.
“So, it was expected that Nigeria would be de-listed as were other countries who fell within this category. Nigeria was, therefore, de-listed since 2022 and was duly informed of this action in 2022,” he said.
According to him, the disqualification had nothing to do with any safety or security deficiency in the nation’s oversight system.
Ojomo revealed that Nigeria had undergone comprehensive International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Safety and Security Audits and recorded no Significant Safety Concern (SSC) or Significant Security Concern (SSeC) respectively.
He emphasised that a Nigerian operator can still function in the U.S. only with an aircraft wet-leased from a country with a current Category 1 status.
He restated that the NCAA is dedicated to maintaining global safety and security requirements while honouring the independence of other countries, such as the United States, as specified in Article 1 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation.