The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) has disagreed with the assessment of the US State Department suggesting Nigerian airports are generally unsafe.
The Director General of NSIB, Capt. Alex Bade during an interview on Arise TV that while there is always room for improvement, he did not concur with the assessment.
He noted: “It’s unfair to generalise that our airports are totally unsafe. We recognise the need for continuous improvement, and we commend the efforts of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) in implementing upgrades.”
“It’s crucial to consider the context and metrics used in such evaluations even as he acknowledged that challenges such as perimeter fencing and instances of wildlife intrusion exist at some airports.”
He, however, emphasised that these are not unique to Nigeria and occur at airports globally, including in the United States.
Bade in a statement on Wednesday by the agency said regarding the recent incident in Asaba, where an aircraft was reported to have encountered animals on the runway, he clarified that the aircraft was fine and continued its journey to Abuja without any damage.
According to him, The incident was reported to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). Since there was no significant issue, it was not reported to the NSIB.
Bade added: “However, we plan to reach out to the private entity managing the airport to discuss best practices.”
He noted that such occurrences involving animals on runways are rare in Nigeria.
On the investigation into the accident involving the late Herbert Wigwe, Bade corrected the assertion that the NSIB worked “side-by-side” with the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
“We were an interested party, and were kept abreast of the process by the NTSB, who led the investigation in the U.S,” he clarified.
The NTSB report indicated that the probable cause of the accident was spatial disorientation.
He noted that the report also highlighted deficiencies in the company’s oversight and safety management processes.
“It appears there were systemic issues, and the flight risk assessment should have indicated a higher risk. While it’s easy to blame the pilot, there is a system behind the pilot that should have mitigated these risks,” he added.