NCAA moves to ensure safety amid concerns over contaminated fuel

In a move aimed at unravelling the causes of contamination of and arresting the ugly trends in the future, Musa Nuhu, the director-general of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, (NCAA) has put a committee in place to audit the facilities of aviation fuel suppliers to airlines.

The audit will include the review of facilities of suppliers and their equipment from the source of the fuel to the point of filling into the aircraft.

The committee members are drawn from NCAA, the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) that issue licences, and Department of State Security (DSS).

Nuhu said the committee will identify the root causes, proffer solutions and recommendations that would improve the level of safety in the aviation industry in Nigeria. The recommendations from this committee would be fully implemented in the interest of the public and safe air travel in Nigeria.

Nuhu, who was represented at the inauguration of the committee by Ibrahim Bello Dambazau director of operations, licensing & training standards, NCAA said the committee became necessary following the recent series of incidents relating to fuel contamination, in particular, that of Max Air fuel contamination in Yola that generated a lot of attention in the country and around the world.

Nuhu urged members of the committee to see this job as a national assignment that must be taken with all seriousness that it deserves.

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“You must not leave any stone unturned and come up with recommendations that would help prevent future occurrence and improve the level of safety in the industry”.

He added that the terms of reference (TOR) has been clearly spelt out, which would see the committee members tour all over the country to ensure compliance with all regulatory and safety requirements.

“The authority’s foremost responsibility is to ensure the safety of aviation activities in Nigeria which we have continued to ensure and we would not relent on this effort towards achieving the highest level of safety in this sector.

“The presidency and the minister have directed that this investigation must be brought to a logical conclusion in the interest of the Nigerian populace”, he added.

The DG noted that the collaboration with NMPDRA has yielded positive results so far and this has led to the identification of all non-licensed fuel suppliers and those with expired license in Nigeria which has led to suspension of their activities at the airport.

The authority also mentioned that surveillance has been heightened to ensure complete and full compliance, adding that an All Operators Letter (AOL) has been issued, mandating all operators to comply with all requirements for fueling as approved.

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha is the Aviation Correspondent at BusinessDay Media Limited, publishers of BusinessDay Newspapers. She is also the Deputy Editor, BusinessDay Weekender Magazine, the Saturday Weekend edition of BusinessDay. She holds a BSC in Mass Communication from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a Masters degree in Marketing at the University of Lagos. As the lead writer on the aviation desk, Ifeoma is responsible and in charge of the three weekly aviation and travel pages in BusinessDay and BDSunday. She also overseas and edits all pages of BusinessDay Saturday Weekender. She has written various investigative, features and news stories in aviation and business related issues and has been severally nominated for award in the category of Aviation Writer of the Year by the Nigeria Media Nite-Out awards; one of the Nigeria’s most prestigious media awards ceremonies. Ifeoma is a one-time winner of the prestigious Nigeria Media Merit Award under the 'Aviation Writer of the Year' Category. She is the 2025 Eloy Award winner under the Print Media Journalist category. She has undergone several journalism trainings by various prestigious organisations. Ifeoma is also a fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Fellowship of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism.