Nigeria’s domestic carrier, Dana Air has reacted to the directive given by the federal government that its operations must be audited and said it was ready for the audit.
“We therefore welcome the recent audit ordered by the federal government and we are willing to work with the team and the FG to demonstrate our commitment not just to flying but to flying safe,” Dana Air said.
The airline in a statement signed by its head of communications, Kingsley Ezenwa, commended the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) for releasing preliminary report on the incident when its flight overshot the runway and skidded into the bush at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa on February 23, 2018.
Dana Air said the report has confirmed its earlier statement that Air Traffic Control directed the pilot in command of the flight to land on the runway over flooded by heavy downpour.
The airline said, “Excerpts of the reports confirmed that the Air Traffic Control, an arm of the Nigerian Air Space Management Agency that is saddled with the responsibility of issuing instructions that the pilots are required to obey, had cleared the pilot in command to land.
“It is pertinent to note that the pilot of that flight is a happily married man and a proud father of three beautiful children. He has over 30 years experience in the aviation industry and is one of the very best in his profession, meticulous in his duties, and headhunted from another domestic airline where he also served as the head of safety and quality standards,” the statement said.
Dana Air remarked that considering the safety measures that it has put in place and its huge investment in training and retraining of its crew and pilots, “we decided not to join issues, but to rather wait on the report of the AIB, the authentic body responsible for such investigations.”
The airline disclosed that in 2013, The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and its foreign partners, the Flight Safety Group, carried out an audit on its operations and in 2016, as a result of its commitment to global safety standards, “we applied to become a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), went through their audit and subsequently became a member in 2016.”
“Our route and fleet expansion program is still very much on course and we remain dedicated to our recent interline and aircraft partnership with Asky airline, another formidable airline in Africa,” the airline also said.
It commended the Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika “who has proven himself as a technocrat, and our esteemed guests for keeping faith with us while the incident was under investigation and we wish to reassure our guests of our commitment towards providing safe, reliable and affordable air transport.”
