Improving Nigeria’s Airspace Safety

The issue of airspace security is an endless problem to Nigeria. Until the weather related facilities and others at the airports are upgraded, the problem will remain unsolved.

Investigations have revealed that the air crashes that occurred between 2003 and 2006 were traceable to bad weather and that is why most flights are delayed or canceled at the airports.

Government at several times has expressed worry and concern about the negative impact of weather on aircraft movement and efforts are being stepped up to ensure the establishment and resuscitation of four additional upper air stations at Enugu, Kano, Lagos and Maiduguri.

With the increase in the number of upper air stations from one in Abuja to five, there are plans to establish additional three before the end of this year to ensure safety in the nation’s airspace.

The Director-General of Nigeria Meteological Agency (NIMET), Dr. Anthony Anuforom said that in the past few years, the agency has re-equipped over 40 weather observatories nationwide with conventional instruments.

According to him, there are plans to construct nine new synoptic station buildings in Abakaliki, Azara, Benin, Damaturu, Dutse, Owerri, Masaka and Sokoto as well as Marine weather observation stations in Aiyetoro, Mahim, Bonny and Calabar.

NIMET is not relenting efforts at ensuring the procurement and installation of five satellite distribution systems in Abuja, Ikeja, Kano, Owerri, Port Harcourt and Sokoto while the one for Maiduguri will be installed soon. Already, the agency has procured and installed seven lighting and thunderstorm detectors in Kaduna, Ibadan, Owerri, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Kano and Yola, in addition to the procurement and installation of 6 integrated aviation weather observatory and display systems in Enugu, Ilorin, Owerri, Katsina, Calabar and Maiduguri airports.

This year, NIMET inaugurated the National Weather Forecasting and Climate Research Centre, a world-class infrastructure at the Abuja Airport and prior to that, the agency in 2008 implemented a number of projects designed to improve the quality of its services.

These projects include the development and deployment of a new and indigenous weather information transmission system called e-Met, establishment and resuscitation of four additional upper air stations at Enugu, Kano, Maiduguri and Oshodi, Lagos.

So far, the number of functional air stations has increased from one in Abuja from 2008 to five.

and before the end of this year, three new ones will be established in Calabar, Jos and Yola.

Some of the projects accomplished to improve air safety are the extensive rehabilitation of NIMET complex in Oshodi, additional classroom and hostel facilities at the |Regional Training Centre, Oshodi, construction and equipping of a new instrument calibration workshop at Abuja. The agency has also successfully installed a Low Level Wind Shear Alert System |(LLWAS) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos while the Site Acceptance Test (SAT) for this system was completed on July 12 and the system is now operational.

This is the first in the history of aviation in Nigeria that the MMIA is equipped with this critical safety equipment.

The aviation industry in Nigeria witnessed its darkest period between 2003 and 2006 when several aircraft accidents occurred resulting in loss of lives and reports on these unfortunate incidents proved that wind shear was a contributory factory in some of them.

Although aviation has been proven to be the safest and fastest means of transportation, the spate of air crashes at that time created unnecessary panic and anxiety and had negative impact or effect on the confidence of Nigerians in air travel, it has, therefore, become necessary for the Federal Government, especially the Ministry of Aviation and its parastatals or agencies to take more serious measures towards ensuring the safety and security of our airspace.