KEY POINTS

• The NCAA says the pilot is 75 and the co-pilot 70, both holding US FAA licences.
• Nigeria caps commercial pilots at 65, but the US rules under which they flew differ.
• The regulator faulted the unauthorized takeoff and suspended the operator’s permit.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has disclosed that the pilot who flew the private aircraft, registration N989BC, which landed on a road in the Ogwashi-Uku area of Delta State, is 75 years old, while the co-pilot is 70. The agency stressed that investigators have already begun work and urged the public to await their findings.

US licences and an age question

According to the Director of Operations, Licensing and Training, Capt. Don Spiff, both pilots hold American licences and operated under United States aviation regulations, so neither counts as overaged under the rules that applied. Speaking on Arise TV’s News Night, Spiff noted that the aircraft is American-registered and that the pilots flew under the US Federal Aviation Administration’s parts 91 and 135.

However, he acknowledged that Nigeria’s standards differ. “In Nigeria, it is 65. Once you are 65, you stop flying commercial,” he said. Furthermore, he revealed that Nigeria is reviewing its regulations, and he explained that a provision in the Civil Aviation Act could eventually let a Nigerian pilot above 65 fly privately, though not commercially, provided he passes a first-class medical check. Notably, he said the operator is VMO Aero, a Nigerian company, even though the aircraft carries American registration.

A flight plan and an unauthorized takeoff

Spiff said the aircraft had filed a flight plan from Lagos to Asaba, attempted an approach there and could not land. Consequently, it performed a go-around. “How he ended up landing on a strip or a road, a newly constructed road, only the pilot and his God could determine,” he said, adding that the investigation would reveal any ulterior motive.

Moreover, the director firmly faulted the decision to take off again from the road. “For him to have taken off, it was not allowed because he did not obtain any clearance for takeoff. He did a kamikaze action. There will be penalties,” he said. As a result, the NCAA has suspended the operator’s commercial certificate, known as a PNCF.

Finally, Spiff defended the safety of Nigerian airspace, describing the episode as an isolated case. “For one incident to have happened in so many months and years should not question the safety of Nigerian airspace,” he said. Ultimately, he said the Nigerian Safety Investigation Board would decide whether to keep the case or hand it back to the NCAA.