Henceforth, any airline engaging in deceitful departure scheduling shall incure the full consequences of regulatory actions. The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), has warned.
The Acting Director General, Civil Aviation, Nigeria, Capt. Chris Najomo gave the stern warning at the Authority’s corporate headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.
He asserted that NCAA now runs a zero-tolerance approach to regulatory infractions.
Speaking through the NCAA Director, Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Mr. Michael Achimugu, at a media interview, said, haven made the ease of doing business at NCAA easier for operators than what it used to be, the Ag DGCAA expected reciprocity of world class services from airlines to their passengers.
“He made the ease of doing business the crux of his action plan for the regulatory agency. In line with that action plan, he has made processes for licensing easy for operators. The time to secure Airline Operator Certificate (AOC) is now shorter and less cumbersome than it used to be in the past. The NCAA therefore expects reciprocity from airlines which principally should be world-class services to passengers,” Achimugu said.
He said the authority has been disturbed with issues of airlines advertising deceitful departure times which they never keep to, could no longer be tolerated.
“It has come to our notice that some airlines are being reported for advertising deceitful departure times. The NCAA regulation says no airline shall display deceitful passenger departure time at its counter, advert material, or on its’ website,” Achimugu said.
The NCAA spokesperson therefore asserted, “We want to make it very clear clear that the DGCA has directed monitoring and offenders will face serious regulatory actions.”
According to him, the Authority believes in safety, discipline, and economic regulations which is evidenced in the recent suspension of ten Private Non Commerccial Flights (PNCF) holders for failing to comply with the recertification advisory issued in April 2024.
He indicated that whilst the NCAA supports airlines to be profitable because of their critical value to the economy, it is important that passengers are treated fairly.
Speaking to the ease of doing business environment at the NCAA, Capt. Najomo said it is an area which the Authority will continue to improve on.
“This is evident in our high score on the Presidential Enabling Business Council (PEBEC) ranking. Recently our sister agency scored 96 percent but the NCAA scored 98.5 percent which is an extremely high score. This is building from the commendable score of 71.04 the NCAA scored during this year’s ICAO Security Audit” he said.
“The figures are improving and we will continue to do what we can to make the industry safer, and more secure for passengers and stakeholders” he assured.
On the difficult refund processes by airlines, he said all refunds by airlines must be done devoid of undue delays and the process should conclude in 14 working days regardless of the mode of purchase of the tickets.
On the suspension of PNCF licences for ten operators, he explained that they were advised since April 2024 to commence the process for recertification but they refused to comply, this left the Authority with no option than to sanction them.
