(3 Minutes Read)
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) announced that the authority will sanction the airlines that schedule departure times deceitfully. The Acting Director-General of NCAA, Chris Najomo, asserted in a statement signed by the Director of Public Affairs/Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu. The NCAA regulation says no airline shall display deceitful passenger departure time at its counter, advert material, or website.
The NCAA warned the airlines to avoid the infraction or face dire regulatory actions. The NCAA now runs a zero-tolerance approach to regulatory infractions. Ease of doing business is the crux of the D-G’s action plan for the NCAA. In line with that action plan, he has made processes for licensing easy for operators.
The time to secure AOC is now shorter and less cumbersome than it used to be in the past. The NCAA, therefore, expects reciprocity from airlines. Chief of which is world-class services to passengers. He further said that if the NCAA was enabling a business-friendly environment for operators, then the operators must satisfy the passengers with superior services. The NCAA regulation says no airline shall display deceitful passenger departure time at its counter, advert material, or website.
The authority believes in safety, discipline, and economic regulation, evident in the recent suspension of ten permits for Non-Commercial Flights (PHCF) holders for failing to comply with the recertification advisory issued in April 2024.
Speaking about the ease of doing business environment at the NCAA, Najomo said the ease of business is an area the agency would continue to improve. This is evident in the high score on the Presidential Enabling Business Council (PEBEC) ranking. Recently our sister agency scored 96 per cent but the NCAA scored 98.5 per cent which is an extremely high score. This is building from the commendable score of 71.04 per cent the NCAA scored during this year’s ICAO Security Audit. The numbers are improving and NCCA will continue to do what it can to make the industry safer, and more secure for passengers and stakeholders.
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On the difficulty of airline refund processes, Najomo said all airline refunds must be completed without undue delays and should conclude in 14 working days regardless of the mode of purchase of the tickets. On the suspension of ten operators’ PHCF licenses, he explained that they had been advised to commence the recertification process in April 2024, but they refused to comply, leaving the agency with no option but to sanction them.
