Nigeria: Enhancing Aeronautical Providers in Nigeria’s Airspace

There is no such thing as a doubt that the Nigerian Airspace Administration Company (NAMA) has contributed immensely in secure flight operation in Nigeria.

Business observers say the federal authorities has proven a number of dedication within the steady funding within the company, guaranteeing that it upgrades its services and tools to fulfill the crucial adjustments in aviation improvement because it issues aeronautical providers.

The company, which additionally relies on its earnings to fund lots of its actions, has additionally upped the exploitation of income sources, particularly over fliers from worldwide carriers.

This explains why NAMA has been deeply concerned in improvement initiatives just like the Complete Radar Protection of Nigeria (TRACON) upkeep assist providers settlement, Complete VHF Protection venture, Aeronautical Data Service (AIS) automation venture, renovation of management tower and alternative of Voice Communication and Management System (VCCS) console, procurement and set up of photo voltaic power, set up of Satellite tv for pc Communication, World Geodetic Survey (WGS-84), Instrument Touchdown System (ILS), the Worldwide Civil Aviation Organisation (ICA0) flight plan and lots of others.

There are indications that a number of adjustments occur in airspace improvement so there are a number of development in that sub-sector and any nation that doesn’t need to be left behind should velocity to fulfill up with the brand new improvement and developments, all geared toward enhancing security and making it simpler for airspace managers to do their work with higher effectivity.

Not too long ago on the 26 League of Aviation and Airport Correspondent (LAAC) seminar held in Lagos, the performing Managing Director of the company, Matthew Lawrence Pwajok, spoke on the most recent initiatives being dealt with by the company.

“Our primary consideration or focus in the intervening time had been to finish some very crucial initiatives which are very, very important for security, for enhancing capability and effectivity of the system. These initiatives embrace, the Secure Tower. The Secure Tower was finished in 2007 and the system wanted it to be upgraded. So we’re embarking on the software program and the {hardware} improve of this secure Tower Mission, which supplies an automatic air site visitors administration system for Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt. It’s a very crucial venture to increase the ATM (Air Site visitors Administration) capability and improve the effectivity of the air site visitors administration system.

“The opposite venture is the Complete Radar Protection improve. You’re additionally conscious that was commissioned in 2010 and over 10 years of utilizing the identical system, we’re upgrading it to the most recent model known as the High Sky System. And that venture will present for enhancement of the effectivity within the capability and the effectiveness of the overall radar protection in Nigeria in 9 radar areas nationwide,” he stated.

Pwajok defined that the venture was additionally very key, not solely to security, but in addition safety of the nation.

“And we even have navigational techniques we’re putting in. In the mean time we have now finished over 10 airports with instrument touchdown techniques class two, and we have now finished instrument touchdown system class three in Lagos and Abuja. We’re at present doing Katsina, Port Harcourt and Kano with instrument touchdown system CAT3. The opposite venture is the AIS automation that has been ongoing for a very long time. We hope to finish a minimum of by the tip of the 12 months. It’s the automation of the data administration system for twenty-four airports and likewise NAMA headquarters,” he stated.

The NAMA boss stated that every one federal and state authorities owned airports within the nation have strategy and touchdown navigational aids, in addition to Satellite tv for pc Primarily based Efficiency Primarily based Navigation procedures that may allow plane function at any time of the day into these airports. In different phrases, NAMA services are prepared for flight operations to many airports within the nation at anytime; so it supplies 24 hours aeronautical tools providers to those airports.

“All airports in Nigeria have instrument touchdown services for strategy and touchdown, which means they’re working primarily based on Instrument Flight Guidelines (IFR) and never primarily based on Visible Flight Guidelines (VFR) the place they pilots are required to visually strategy and land inside Dawn to Sundown time. Aside from one or two non-public aerodromes, all federal and state authorities owned airports managed by NAMA are geared up with Instrument Touchdown System (ILS), besides the place they’re quickly unserviceable or the Runway and Strategy lights are unserviceable, however nonetheless you can not check with them as dawn or sundown airports,” he defined.

Pwajok stated in a bid to deal with visibility points in some airports throughout adversarial climate, the company commenced the implementation of Class III ILS in Abuja and Lagos airports whereas these of Katsina, Kano and Port Harcourt have been being put in and could be prepared earlier than the tip of 2022. He famous that regardless of the excessive value of diesel, the company had all the time granted prolonged providers to airways, which made such requests and can proceed to take action.

He reiterated that NAMA is a 100 per cent self-funded authorities company offering air navigation providers at federal, state and personal airports in Nigeria at rising value and can also be required to remit 25 per cent of her gross income to the federation account, stating that it’s uneconomical for the company to function past 12 hours each day at a home airport only for a single flight.

He subsequently assured airline operators that NAMA has and would all the time grant extension of operational hours when the necessity arises. He nonetheless assured that the company in collaboration with sister companies, could be keen to increase the operational hours of busy airports like Enugu and Benin.

NAMA funds most of its initiatives from its Internally Generated Income (IGR), however the federal authorities bankrolls most of the security crucial initiatives like Class 3 ILS, TRACON and WGS-84.