United States’ Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is set to visit Nigeria for the mandatory re-assessment of the CAT 1 status which Nigeria attained in September 2010.
Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), who disclosed this to newsmen in Lagos, said the FAA team would arrive in Nigeria on March 31, 2014, for the exercise.
He said CAT 1 is different from a university degree, which, according to him, is offered for life.
“When CAT 1 is offered, it is not good for life. It has to be re-validated from time to time,” he said.
He said in attaining CAT 1, Nigeria joined the league of giant nations in aviation and attributed growth of Nigeria’s aviation industry to the FAA rating.
“Cat 1, which as you are all aware, has impacted positively the aviation industry. Due to the enhanced safety rating, insurance premium for airlines has been reasonable. This is one of the most significant operating costs for an airline.
“It will engender much more favourable leasing/lending terms from financial institutions for our airline operators. As we have been witnessing, the volume of traffic into the country has been increasing annually in the aftermath.
“The influx of scheduled commercial airlines operating into the regional hub for West Africa and there has been business and cultural exchange in the region. Our statistics clearly informed us of astronomical increase in commerce and volume of cargo movement which has seen aviation contributing to the nations’ economic growth.
“The certification has made the industry attractive to foreign and local investors which have culminated in accelerated development of our local carriers who are now code sharing with foreign operators.
Nigerian registered aircraft began to operate directly into the United States of America thus eliminating the earlier wet lease arrangements that were prevalent in the industry. Reciprocally, American operators are now flying into the country.”
