The frequency of near misses during domestic flights recorded in 2019 point to a slackening of safety standards. Hence, there is an urgent need to improve safety audits and tighten standards in the aviation sector.
The rise in the number of accidents and incidents on domestic flights is no coincidence. Planes plying domestic routes are being kept airborne longer due to the rise in air traffic.
The bad state of inter-state roads and recurring insecurity along frequently travelled routes across the country have forced Nigerians to take to the air; at least those who can afford it.
According to figures by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) passenger traffic increased by 19.4 percent from 13,706,345 in 2017 to 16,371,674 in 2018.
At the domestic airports in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano and Enugu in the first three months of 2019, the number of travellers rose to 13,762 from 11,842 in 2018, a 16.21 percent increase.
The number of reported mishaps has also gone up. There have been 24 reported cases of accidents and serious incidents between 2018 and 2019, according to data compiled by the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), the body responsible for investigating air accidents. Thirteen of these were in 2018 while 11 have occurred in the first half of this year.
Recent mishaps include runway excursion, contained engine failure, smoke-in-the-cabin, ground collision with baggage conveyor, in-flight total loss of electrical power, ground collision during fuelling, engine failure, depressurisation, attempting to land when number one symbol generator went off, crashed on landing, force landing, landing with gears up, hard landing and collapsed nose wheel on landing.
Most have resulted in emergency landing.
Experts say airlines are bound to experience operational hiccups but their frequency suggests the near misses are one too many.
Hence, the airlines, FAAN and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) need to ensure thorough safety audits.
Safety standards need to be re-evaluated as regards safety management, operational and maintenance systems. It’s important to note that we are in the peak of the rainy season. Admittedly, the weather can’t be controlled but navigational aids and infrastructure that can prevent incidents and accidents during this period need to be in working order.
For over seven years there has been no fatal air accident in Nigeria. This didn’t happen by chance. The days when domestic airlines were likened to flying coffins have scarred memories; some are yet to heal. These memories are the more painful because the accidents could have been avoided. A delayed safety check, an overlooked routine repair or failure to maintain runway or weather equipment at the airport are called unforced errors in tennis. That is, careless or foolish mistakes that are the result of the failure of an airline, or regulatory body charged with safety or management of airport infrastructure.
More Nigerians will fly frequently. At least until security on the roads improve – kidnappers have made major highways in Nigeria dreadful and unsafe. And the lives of those who choose to travel by road, because they can’t afford to fly, is as invaluable as those who can afford a return ticket to Akure. Security on our roads, and their state, need urgent attention too.
Airplanes are not danfos. Domestic airlines can’t be run with a “manage it like that mentality”. It’s a deranged formula for courting disaster. Airlines and regulators must look beyond the income and fees they can generate from as many trips as possible in a day at the risk of the safety of passengers.
