8th Safety, Security & Service Summit: Stakeholders Urge Greater Reforms And Professionalism. – By Ewos IRORO
Introduction
The 8th Travel
& Business News Safety, Security & Service Summit held on October
31, 2013 at the Training Centre of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA)
Headquarters Annex, Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos. The
annual gathering, which had as its theme: “Restoring
Hope To A Depressed Air Transport Sector In Nigeria,” attracted a wide
spectrum of high profile and seasoned industry experts and professionals
calling for greater reforms and professionalism in the sector as a means of
changing the fortunes of the industry.
Among those who graced the occasion were,
Ambassador Michael Ononaiye, former Ambassador to Portugal and Nigerian
Representative at the United Nations (UN); Mr. Gbenga Olowo, President, Sabre
Travel Network; and Mr. Soji Amusan, MD, Alphafirst Travel & Tourism
Academy. Others are Captain Dele Ore, President, Aviation Round Table; Engr.
Tunde Obadofin, MD, Aeroconsult; Engr. Shery Kyari, an Aviation Consultant; and
Mr. Sam Akerele, Secretary General, Aviation Round Table as well as Airline
representatives, Presidents and representatives of industry unions and
professional bodies among a host of others.
Need For
Reforms
In his opening remark, Ambassador Michael
Ononaiye, who was also the Chairman of the occasion recalled from his days in
active service that he was part of the team that negotiated a number of
Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) between Nigeria and several other
countries. He noted that the interest of the nation always came first above all
other considerations stressing that BASA is a function of the calibre of people
that went to negotiate.
He also recalled that during his time at the UN
he was always proud to fly Nigeria Airways and wherever he went he always
routed his flights through Lagos in order to ensure that the airline made some
money from his various official trips. He however remarked that it is sad that
today many foreign carriers are given unfettered access into various points of
the country without carefully considering its impact on domestic airlines in
the country. “The sickest patient needs the best expert,” he argued. To this
end, he advised: “Reform the Ministry, not the Industry. We are already
reformed.”
Giving credence to the Ambassador’s line of
thought, Mr. Ewos Iroro, Editor, Travel & Business News and Coordinator of
the conference, said the industry has faced a number of challenges in the past
few years and that airline operators have had to put up with several
challenges. He also noted that the demise of Nigeria Airways has had a
deleterious effect on the sector in terms of availability of skilled manpower.
He remarked that Nigeria Airways had no business going out of existence
considering the lucrative BASAs and Assets the airline had all over the world.
Mr. Sam Akerele added his voice to the subject noting that airlines that were a
lot more indebted than Nigeria Airways usually file for bankruptcy protection
and today they are still in business. He therefore wondered why the same
principle was not applied in the case of the erstwhile national carrier.
(L - R) Mr. Felix Anyanwu, Regional Director, IFAIMA; Mr. Basil Agboarumi, GM, Public Affairs, Skyway Aviation Handling Company Limited (SAHCOL); Mrs. Joy Onyeadi; Station Manager, South African Airways; Mrs. Christie Oseghale, GM, Safety, SAHCOL; and Mr. Ewos Iroro, Editor, Travel & Business News.
Absence
of A Strong Nigerian Carrier
Captain Dele Ore, President, Aviation Round
Table said the problem of the sector started in 1995 when Nigeria Airways was
liquidated. He noted that ever since there hasn’t been any airline that serves
as a benchmark for other airlines to follow and that the pool of well trained
professionals of the carrier has effectively been dispersed over the years. He
urged key players in the sector to always think about the survival of Nigeria
over and above other considerations.
Succession
Plan & Autonomy of CAA
Mr. Sam Akerele, Secretary General, Aviation
Round Table, noted that there is a huge gap in skilled manpower in the sector
being made worse by an ageing workforce. He said “this is not good for the
industry” because Vacuum being filled
by foreigners. The conference also went further to state that one of the issues
still affecting the sector is the Autonomy of the Nigerian Civil Aviation
Authority (NCAA). They called on
government to follow proven examples around the world in a bid to allow the
NCAA carry out its operations without political interference which has hitherto
restricted its full autonomy.
Professional
Leadership & Pension Issues
The conference also touched on the need for
expert and qualified professionals to lead the sector at all levels.
Participants expressed concern over the issue of cases where ethnicity takes
precedence over qualified professionals.
Engr. Godwin O. Jibodu, an
Aviation Consultant, noted with dismay that the entitlements and benefits of
retiring and retired workforce in the sector needs to be given urgent attention
as a way of ensuring motivation of staff. He decried the lingering none payment
of benefit to former staff of Nigeria Airways stressing that Government’s
insensitivity to their plight hasn’t helped in any way adding that no fewer
than 900 of such staff have already lost their lives without being paid.
Service
Delivery & Security
Mr. Soji Amusan, MD, of Alphafirst Travel &
Tourism Academy, remarked that service quality is an integral part of the
success of any business and decried the substandard level of service delivery
in the country. He noted that people must be properly trained on the job and
have a strong knowledge of the service they provide. Adding his thoughts to the
issue from a different angle, Mr. Akerele commended the airport rehabilitation
exercise going on around the country but further urged that a lot more should
be done to ensure that the various supporting equipment and facilities provided
are reliable and work at optimal levels. Participants at the gathering also expressed
increased concerns over the number of drugs and banned substances cases in the
country today compared to the past. There were also calls for better profiling
of travellers in an effort to reduce risks to passengers.
Making A
Case For Maintenance
Engr. Tunde Obadofin said the demise of Nigeria
Airways has led to the loss of seasoned experts who were trained by the airline
and have gone into retirement. He noted that nowadays airlines only recycle
some of these professionals who are already quite old rather than concentrating
on training new skilled manpower. He remarked that in the days of Nigeria
Airways, they were able to carry out C & D Checks on the F27 and F28, as
well as up to C Checks on the Airbus, DC-10 and Boeing Aircraft in the
airline’s fleet. “Unfortunately, today, that facility has been given to a
single airline and it is now difficult to have access to the facility,” he
noted sadly. He therefore called on Government to take proactive steps in this
regard in an effort to ease the burden of airlines operating in the country.
Airlines
To Take Training Seriously
Engr. Shery Kyari, an erstwhile Engineer with
Nigeria Airways made an urgent call for the CAA to make it mandatory for
airline operators to employ pilots and engineers from Zaria as a prerequisite
for issuance of AOC. He observed that airlines in the past used to employ and train
their staff in these areas but noted that the case is now different. “The
industry is filled with so many expatriates and yet there are many of our young
Nigerian pilots and engineers roaming the streets on the excuse that the
airlines want people with experience. But where are they supposed to get the
experience from if they are not employed?” He added that, “in some countries it
is difficult to get a job as a Nigerian, yet we have so many of them from
around Africa flying in the country while our people suffer,” he submitted.
Emphasis
On Commercials For Airline Survival
Mr. Gbenga Olowo, President, Sabre Travel
Network and former Executive Director of Bellview Airlines noted that airlines
need to pay more attention to commercial sources of revenue rather than
continue to concentrate on ticket sales. He noted that with a 40% load factor
airlines can break even if they utilize the huge potentials of commercials. He
stressed that more attention should be concentrated on filling Business Class
seats, carrying more cargo as well as mails. He observed that a company like
DHL has over 250 aircraft and does only cargo business, yet it is bigger than
most airlines around the world.
Raising
Future Aviation Professionals
The forum was also used to announce the categories,
topics and entry dates of the 5th National Travel Essay Competition (NTEC
2013/2014). Miss Peace Adeola, Winner of NTEC 2012/2013 and current Industry
Ambassador, had the rare privilege of addressing the conference and carrying
out the assignment. While delivering her speech, she said: “Since being crowed
winner of the contest in May this year, I have learnt quite a few things about
the industry that has fuelled my passion more than ever before to become an
Aeronautical Engineer so that I can contribute my quota to making the Nigerian
Airspace safer,” adding that “one way of doing this is by giving scholarships
to brilliant but indigent youngsters around the country who are interested in
pursuing a career in any field of Aviation.”
She went further to state that in line with
calls for wider participation in the annual writing contest, the Tertiary
Institutions Category has been added as well the Secondary Schools Category.
Letting the cat out of the bag, Miss Adeola said: “The topic for the Secondary
Schools Category is: ‘Helicopters: How Important To Our Daily Life
And Economy?’ while that for the Tertiary Institutions is: ‘Safety
Versus Profit In Airline Operations: Which Comes First?’” Entry dates
for the 2013/2014 competition is November 4, 2013 to April 4, 2014.
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