The Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika has directed an immediate investigation into the use of unauthorised equipment by Aero Contractors to disembark passengers at Bauchi airport over the weekend.
The airline on Saturday operated a chartered flight to Bauchi and used ordinary ladder to disembark passengers when the gangway, which is the standard stairway to board and disembark passengers, was not made available.
According to statement from the Minister of State for Aviation, several reports received by the Minister had indicated the airline used a ladder to disembark passengers from a Boeing 737 aircraft at the Bauchi airport on Saturday December 19th 2015.
“According to the Minister, the act is inconsistent with Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARs) and International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPS),” the statement said.
The Minister said the investigation would determine the immediate and remote causes of the incident with a view to developing and implementing measures that would prevent a reoccurrence of the unsafe and unacceptable procedure that exposed passengers to high risk of serious injury, adding that if the airline was found culpable, the full weight of sanctions within the extant laws and regulations would be applied on it.
“The Honourable Minister assures the traveling public that the Ministry of Transportation in collaboration with Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) would ensure strict adherence to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations as well as ICAO Standards and recommended practices by all operators,” the statement which was signed by James Odaudu of the Press and Public Affairs, Ministry of Aviation.
However, on Saturday, Aero Contractors confirmed the incident and said explained that a special charter flight operated by Aero to Bauchi had problems with unserviceable equipment by the airport management in disembarking about 34 passengers from Abuja.
“Consequently against the airline’s wish and operation safety guideline, the passengers used a ladder to disembark.
“However at the time of boarding the air stairs became functional and the passengers boarded successfully,” the statement said.
Also the aviation handling company, which provides service to Aero Contractors, the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc (nahco aviance) said it does not work at the Bauchi airport so there was no way it could have provided service to the airline at that airport.
“NAHCO does not have operations in Bauchi. This fact is well known to Aero and all our client airlines. So, for Aero to embark on that chartered flight to Bauchi, it definitely would have made its own private arrangements,” the handling company said.
