While United Nigeria Airlines (UNA) has suspended the flight dispatcher who gave the wrong dispatch code on its controversial flight NUA 0504 which landed in Asaba instead of Abuja, fresh facts have revealed that it was indeed a cocktail of errors that precipitated the incident.
The issue has pitted the Flight Dispatchers Association of Nigeria (FLIDAN) against United Airlines, Air Traffic Controllers, and the Airline Operators of Nigeria,
A source close to the airline confided in our correspondent on Wednesday that the flight dispatcher (names withheld) who had been working with it since its inception about three years was issued the suspension letter on Tuesday.
The suspension was to allow non-interference in the ongoing investigation into the incident, according to the Airline’s officials. The suspension order would remain in place pending the conclusion of the ongoing investigation into the incident.
When contacted, Mr. Achilleus-Chud Uchegbu, Head of Corporate Communications, at United Nigeria Airlines, confirmed the suspension He, however, declined to comment further on it saying that the suspension didn’t mean the dispatcher was already found guilty. “The suspension was not an indictment, but an action to enable investigation“, he added.
However, the Flight Dispatcher Association of Nigeria (FLIDAN), has called for an investigation into the incident. FLIDAN in a statement by Victoria Adegbe, its Secretary General, insisted that the flight dispatcher followed the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations, Part 8-Operations in its conduct.
Adegbe said that the flight dispatcher filed a flight plan with the Aeronautical Information Service (AIS) which was transmitted to the control tower. The flight plan, according to the association, indicated Lagos as a departure, while Abuja was the destination. Enugu and Port Harcourt airports were also given as first and second alternates, respectively.
The body further said that the weather folder given showed that Abuja weather was good as at the time of the departure from Lagos, but regretted that the pilot called the Air Traffic Control (Tower) for clearance to depart to Asaba, rather than Abuja.
FLIDAN regretted that the tower granted the pilot’s request against the legal flight plan submitted by the flight dispatcher, maintaining that the pilot and air traffic controller team seemed not to follow what was filed, which by implication, meant that they disregarded “Operational Control ” of the flight dispatcher, which empowers a 50 per cent Joint and Equal Responsibility of the Safety of the flight to the Flight Dispatcher.
- The body added: “The Airlines’ Operational control, which allowed a pilot to generate his own Operational Flight Plan (OFP), thereby taking full responsibility for the dispatch release is an outright breach of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations, NCAR Part 8.
- “The Airlines’ Operations Control further contravened the NCAR, which states that an airline pilot shall take to the destination airport a copy of the flight plan, dispatch release and load manifest. By implication, if the pilot had the flight plan on him, he would have gotten his destination right, the dispatch release if it was with him summarises the departure and destination, which was clearly disregarded.
- “The ATC should not have granted a scheduled flight clearance to depart to a destination that was not as filed by the flight dispatcher. The airline in a show of absolute disregard for aviation law went ahead to suspend the flight dispatcher who upheld the licence issued by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and carried out his job as required by law.”
Searchlight on Operation control of UNA
FLIDAN called on the NCAA to beam a searchlight on the operations control of the airline, which it said had seized operational control from the flight dispatcher. It also urged the air traffic control to look into the regulations that governed granting clearance contrary to the filed flight plan.
Recalled that the flight dispatcher had on Sunday entered into the dispatch document ABB, which is the code for Asaba International Airport, Delta, instead of ABV, which is the code for Abuja Airport.
The incident caused the NCAA to issue some new guidelines on wet-leased aircraft, while the investigation is still ongoing.
With additional reports by Nairametrics
