… Directs Other Carriers To Implement Necessary Preventive Measures
SAN FRANCISCO, July 28, (THEWILL) – The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, (NCAA), has suspended all A-Sky Airline operations to Nigeria with immediate effect.
A-Sky Airline is an important player in the West, East and Central Africa region operating 80 flights into Lagos and Abuja weekly. The Airline flew the Liberian, Patrick Sawyer, the infected deceased ECOWAS consultant with the virus into Lagos, Nigeria.
The directive to suspend operations of the carrier was approved on Monday by Engr. Benedict Adeyileka, the Acting Director General of the NCAA, who hinged the action on the need to protect Nigerians from the deadly Ebola virus which is ravaging some parts of East, West and Central Africa.
NCAA in a statement said the Country Manager of A-Sky was invited to the NCAA headquarters to show evidence of actions taken by the airline since the pandemic broke in their core areas of operation and after. It added however that the airline’s representative “could not offer any conclusive or substantial evidence neither did he demonstrate any capacity to be able to prevent a reoccurrence or possibly ship loading Ebola victims to Nigeria contrary to the provision of Article 14 of the Chicago Convention,1944, which states that “Each contracting State agrees to take effective measures to prevent the spread by means of air navigation, of cholera, typhus (epidemic), smallpox, yellow fever, plague and such other communicable diseases as the contracting state shall from time to time decide to designate…..””
NCAA said the Airline’s operations will remain “suspended with immediate effect until it is able to sufficiently and evidently prove that adequate machinery is in place to provide adequate screening of passengers in all their points of operation including profiling of each passenger.”
The statement signed by Fan Ndubuoke, General Manager of Public Affairs of the NCAA said, the agency has directed the Directorate of Air Transport Regulation (DATR) to proceed to write a letter of investigation to the airline, adding that Arik Air which had earlier suspended flights to Monrovia and Freetown has been advised to maintain the cessation of flights until cleared by NCAA.
“The Authority will also write to other airlines operating into and out of Nigeria to ensure they put in place all necessary preventive measures during screening of passengers which will include indicating countries earlier visited by the passengers.”
“The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, therefore wishes to assure Nigerians that it would coordinate the establishment of a Rapid Response Health Team at the International airports, being major ports of entry. This is to prevent the spread of the deadly Ebola virus in Nigeria according to international best practices. In addition, the Authority will support all the relevant health authorities in the implementation of adequate health measures,” NCAA said.
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