Lawmakers halt issuance of NG Eagle AOC with immediate effect

The Senate has halted the issuance of NG Eagle Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) with immediate effect.

The AOC is the approval granted by the National Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes. This requires the operator to have personnel, assets and system in place to ensure the safety of its employees and the general public.

In an official letter addressed to the director-general of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), dated 11th October, 2021 and signed by the chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Senator Smart Adeyemi, the committee directed the NCAA to stop the issuance of AOC to NG Eagle.

NG Eagle is an emerging domestic airline coming into the local air travel market and floated by AMCON.

The letter to the DG of NCAA which was made available on Thursday, said “the Senate Committee on Aviation has resolved a joint petition by the Association of Nigerian Aviation Professionals (ANAP) and Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) branch. The joint petition challenges the application for AOC by Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to NG Eagle.

“The petition categorically stipulated that the application for AOC is unrealistic and unfeasible as the debt profile of Arik Airlines which is presently under receivership by AMCON is enormous. Therefore, the notion that AOC is granted to NG Eagle while it uses Arik aircraft which accounts for part of the assets of Arik Airlines will invariably undermine the receivership.

“Having carefully considered the submission by the union, the Senate Committee on Aviation in consonance with the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation hereby directs you to immediately suspend the issuance of the AOC to NG Eagle. The essence of this suspension is to enable the committee and relevant Authorities carry out a thorough investigation on all allegations levelled by the union in the petition. The Committee expects full compliance of this directive until a workable resolution is achieved”.