{"id":4974,"date":"2013-06-09T11:27:10","date_gmt":"2013-06-09T11:27:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/disnaija.com\/nigerian-newspapers\/why-oshiomholes-chopper-was-delayed-at-benin-airport-nama\/"},"modified":"2013-06-09T11:27:10","modified_gmt":"2013-06-09T11:27:10","slug":"why-oshiomholes-chopper-was-delayed-at-benin-airport-nama","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disnaija.com\/why-oshiomholes-chopper-was-delayed-at-benin-airport-nama\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Oshiomhole\u2019s chopper was delayed at Benin Airport \u2013NAMA"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By STEVE AGBOTA<\/p>\n

Nigeria Airspace Management Agency ( NAMA) yesterday gave vivid account of the circumstances leading to the delay of the helicopter belonging to OAS Helicopters, saying that the pilot of the chopper failed to comply with safety directive by not filing a flight plan and submitting a manifest as prescribed for such operations.<\/p>\n

According to Managing Director of NAMA, Nnamdi Udoh, pilot of the helicopter should be held responsible for the incident over his failure to comply with a mandatory operational directive issued by NAMA since April; that all pilots must submit a flight plan and file passenger manifest before any flight.<\/p>\n

Speaking through General Manager, Public Affairs of NAMA, Mr Supo Atobatele, he explained that the incident had nothing to do with politics, but purely an aviation matter bordering on rules and regulations.<\/p>\n

He said, \u201cWe want to be emphatic with our declaration this afternoon that the safety and security related issues raised by our men on Friday at Benin Airport is about a flight plan and passenger manifest. It has no political undertone at all, but purely an aviation matter bordering on rules and regulation.<\/p>\n

\u201cBasically, as a matter of rules, we need to know where the aircraft was going and how many people were on board. NAMA by statute is covered by legislation to demand for these. But the pilot or his employer failed to comply with this simple procedure.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a globally acceptable procedure for a pilot to file his flight plan and declare his passenger manifest before getting a start up . When this is done, there would be delays while perfecting your documentation at the point of departure.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a minor issue that should not be given political colouration as being done now. NAMA is never political in discharging her duties.<\/p>\n

NAMA is safety-driven as safety does not respect status, what is applicable to ordinary citizen is also applicable to very important persons, because accident does not discriminate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also speaking, coordinating spokesman of aviation agencies, Mr Yakubu Dati, said the chopper was never grounded as alleged in some quarters, but the pilot was requested to lift the chopper from Government House in Benin to the airport in order to carry out the mandatory safety requirement.<\/p>\n

According to him, the chopper was only delayed for a few minutes because the pilot did not do what he ought to have done, even as he denied that the crew was kept on ground for non-payment of navigational charges.<\/p>\n

He said the new civil aviation policy requires all airlines and pilots to comply with the mandatory directive of filing a flight plan and declaring passenger manifest before embarking on any flight irrespective of the occupant on board the aircraft.<\/p>\n

Dati further explained that even pilots flying the presidential aircraft file flight plan and give manifest of passengers on board, let alone other scheduled and non-scheduled operators.<\/p>\n

He said it is merely a safety procedure that pilots must comply with, adding that it is wrong for any pilot to disregard such directive.<\/p>\n

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Posted in Nigerian Newspapers. <\/a>A DisNaija.Com<\/a> network.<\/p>\n

Source: The Sun Newspaper<\/p>\n

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