Safety Concerns Grow As NCAA Halts Critical Training For Aviation Workers

Aviation workers have expressed concerns following allegations that the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has failed to implement approved staff training programmes, while questions have also emerged over the currency of professional licences held by some of the agency’s inspectors.

The development has triggered criticism from aviation workers and industry stakeholders, who warn that a failure to provide critical, recurrent training could undermine the technical competence of personnel responsible for ensuring the safety of flight operations in Nigeria.

Aviation experts warned that the failure to provide essential training could have serious implications for aviation safety, particularly where personnel are required to undergo recurrent courses to maintain their professional competence.

Confirming the development in an exclusive chat with LEADERSHIP, the deputy secretary-general of the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), Comrade Olayinka Abioye, accused the NCAA management of failing to implement approved training programmes for 2026, despite their inclusion in the budget approved by the National Assembly.

Abioye said the alleged suspension of local and international training programmes was particularly troubling because some courses were critical to maintaining workers’ professional competence and keeping them abreast of operational and safety requirements.

According to him, the management attributed the failure to implement the programmes to a lack of funds, raising questions about the utilisation of resources allocated for staff development.

He alleged that the authority spent only 10 per cent of its approved 2025 training budget and demanded an explanation for the unspent balance.

“Management just spent only 10 per cent on training. What happened to the other outstanding 90 per cent? Where is the money?” he asked.

He continued, “It poses danger, very serious danger for the industry,” Abioye said.

Abioye said the authority owed workers nine months of salary arrears arising from the conditions of service, while management had reportedly paid only 50 per cent of the approved rent allowance.

He said the agreement, which covers workers and the DGCA, was endorsed nearly a year ago, but alleged that management had failed to fulfil key obligations without adequately consulting the unions.

The union leader also questioned the NCAA’s handling of the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge, alleging that some airlines owed substantial sums, with liabilities in certain cases reaching N5bn.

He argued that the authority should strengthen its collection and recovery efforts to ensure that airlines meet their remittance obligations and that the proceeds are distributed to the designated aviation agencies.

Abioye said workers had unanimously mandated the unions to demand the settlement of outstanding entitlements and implementation of the approved training programmes.

He added that the unions’ current mandate would expire at the end of October, after which they would determine their next course of action if management failed to address their demands.

The union leader maintained that management should engage labour representatives over its financial challenges rather than unilaterally suspend agreed obligations.

“The simple thing, the most decent thing, is you call your partners because unions are partners with every employer. No employer is more powerful than his workers.”

Speaking to the issue on the implication to the sector, a former pilot with the defunct Nigeria Airways, Capt. Mohammed Gbadamasi, questioned the status of NCAA inspectors’ professional licences, asking whether personnel whose licences might have expired were still performing safety oversight duties.

Gbadamasi said the allegations, if established, would raise questions about the regulator’s capacity to discharge its responsibilities effectively.

He expressed concern that some NCAA employees were allegedly dissatisfied with the agency’s management but were reluctant to speak out for fear of losing their jobs.

The former pilot said the currency of inspectors’ licences and their technical proficiency were essential to the effective regulation of aircraft operations and compliance with aviation safety standards.

“What’s the status of the inspectors in respect to their licence currency? Have they been working even if their licences have expired?” he asked.

He added: “If the inspector is not technically proficient, who will be responsible for the oversight functions necessary for the safety of flight operations in the industry?”

Gbadamasi also questioned whether funding constraints could explain the alleged training lapses, pointing to revenues accruing to the NCAA from the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge (TSC).

“What reasons are given for this development? It can’t be for lack of funds, as we know that the larger percentage of the five per cent ticket sales is taken by them,” he said.

He urged the NCAA to clarify whether inspectors had maintained the required licence currency and whether aircraft certification and other oversight activities were being conducted in accordance with applicable safety requirements.

“NCAA should let us know where they stand on this matter. Are aircraft being flown without inspectors certifying the aircraft? I don’t want to believe so,” he said.

Nigeria’s aviation safety gains could be reversed if the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) fails to resume critical staff training, with aviation analyst Gbenga Onitilo warning that the suspension threatens the country’s regulatory oversight capacity and its progress in international safety assessments.

Onitilo said the ongoing dispute between aviation unions and NCAA management over the remittance of the five per cent charge paid by airlines must not be allowed to undermine the competence of inspectors responsible for certifying airlines, approving maintenance organisations, checking pilots and inspecting aircraft.

He warned that suspending recurrent training was not a neutral cost-saving measure, but a decision that could gradually weaken aviation safety oversight and erode Nigeria’s recent gains in the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) safety validation process.

He said a joint task force of the National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (ANAP), the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), the National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE) and the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN) gave the Director-General of Civil Aviation, Capt. Chris Najomo, until October 31 to account for the five per cent charge remitted by airlines or face industrial action.

The unions alleged that NCAA management had blamed airlines’ failure to remit the charge for the suspension of local and overseas staff training, delays in allowances owed to personnel who completed approved foreign training and nine months of salary arrears.

They said the explanation prompted them to picket Air Peace but later claimed that airlines had remitted billions of naira that the regulator could not account for.

ATSSSAN’s Deputy Secretary-General, Comrade Olayinka Abioye, reportedly demanded up-to-date remittance details, the immediate resumption of training and the payment of outstanding allowances and salary arrears by the end of October.

Onitilo, however, stressed that the allegations remained unproven and that the NCAA should be given a fair opportunity to respond. He maintained that the dispute over the levy must be resolved without compromising the training required to sustain effective safety oversight.

He explained that under the Chicago Convention, Nigeria was committed to maintaining an effective aviation safety oversight system, with ICAO identifying eight Critical Elements that countries must implement to ensure regulatory effectiveness.

He said Critical Element 4, which covers qualified technical personnel, requires states to establish minimum qualifications for technical staff and provide initial and recurrent training to maintain and improve their competence.

According to him, inspectors must remain abreast of developments in the aviation industry, particularly as airlines introduce new aircraft types, technologies and operating procedures.

He noted that specialised training, including aircraft type courses, simulator recurrent training and advanced airworthiness programmes, was often delivered by aircraft manufacturers and established training centres abroad.

Onitilo said Nigeria’s previous safety oversight performance showed the consequences of weaknesses in technical personnel training and other regulatory functions.

He recalled that Nigeria scored approximately 70 per cent in the 2023 ICAO Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme (USOAP), below the global benchmark at the time.

The country recorded 60.98 per cent for qualified technical personnel, 42.22 per cent for surveillance and 49.7 per cent for approvals and certification, areas he said depended heavily on the competence and continuous development of inspectors.

Although Nigeria’s performance improved significantly, recording an Effective Implementation score of approximately 91.4 per cent during the ICAO Coordinated Validation Mission in April 2026, Onitilo warned that the progress should not be taken for granted.

He explained that validation reflected corrective actions closed and evidence submitted, while ICAO’s Continuous Monitoring Approach was designed to establish whether improvemethe closure of corrective actions and the submission of evidencents could be sustained.

He cautioned that prolonged training suspensions could weaken the very regulatory functions that contributed to Nigeria’s earlier poor performance, potentially undermining the country’s latest safety oversight gains.

The analyst identified several risks, including a widening competence gap between the regulator and the airlines it supervises, as well as the possibility that inspectors could fall behind developments in modern aircraft systems and aviation technology.

He warned that any deterioration in oversight capacity could affect future international safety assessments, Nigeria’s standing in the global aviation industry and the ability of local airlines to pursue international expansion.

He also raised concerns about the potential loss of experienced personnel to airlines, maintenance, repair and overhaul organisations, and foreign aviation regulators if skilled inspectors were denied professional development opportunities while awaiting allowances for training already completed.

According to him, declining staff morale could further weaken regulatory effectiveness, particularly where personnel lose confidence in the management of the institution responsible for enforcing aviation safety standards.

“Restoring training is not a favour to workers,” Onitilo argued, stressing that continuous professional development was essential to keeping inspectors current on aircraft fleets, safety management systems, cybersecurity and global navigation satellite system interference.

He said well-trained inspectors were better positioned to challenge operators, enforce compliance and identify safety risks before they developed into serious incidents.

While acknowledging the financial pressures facing the regulator, including high foreign exchange costs and uncertain revenue flows, Onitilo argued that safety-critical training should be among the last areas to suffer budget cuts.

He proposed that the NCAA dedicate a fixed proportion of the five per cent airline charge to safety-critical training and publish transparent records of remittances to address the unions’ concerns.

He also recommended a blended training strategy that would maximise local and regional opportunities through the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), the Banjul Accord Group Aviation Safety Oversight Organisation (BAGASOO), and ICAO TRAINAIR PLUS partners, while reserving overseas training slots for specialised aircraft-type and simulator programmes.

In addition, he urged the authority to pay outstanding allowances to personnel who had completed approved training, describing the move as a practical step towards rebuilding staff confidence and restoring industrial harmony.

With the unions’ October 31 deadline approaching, Onitilo warned that neither prolonged picketing nor a regulator distracted by industrial conflict would serve the interests of passengers and the wider aviation industry.

He called for a transparent resolution of the dispute, the publication of the relevant remittance figures and the immediate resumption of critical training programmes.

Nigeria, he said, had made substantial progress in improving its aviation safety oversight performance and could not afford to jeopardise those gains over a dispute that transparency and constructive engagement could resolve.

Responding to LEADERSHIP, the NCAA attributed delays in staff training to late budget approvals and funding constraints, while identifying outstanding debts owed by domestic airlines as an additional pressure on its finances.

The agency’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, said the approval of a budget did not automatically translate into the release of funds required to implement planned activities.

Achimugu explained that the timing of federal budget approvals had affected the implementation of training programmes, with some activities spilling over into subsequent years.

“Typically, approval of a budget is not the same as cash backing. Even if a budget is approved for something, it is when the cash backing is available that the expenditure can be implemented,” he said.

He noted that the 2026 budget was approved around April, May or June, making it difficult for the authority to commence some activities earlier in the year.

On the specific allegations concerning training across the agency, Achimugu said he could only speak authoritatively about programmes within his directorate and would need further information before confirming the situation in other departments.

He said he had sought a briefing from the Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Dr Chris Najomo, and expected to obtain a clearer understanding of the dispute following a meeting between the management and the unions.

“I believe it would not be appropriate for me to hear only from the union and go to the press. That is why I decided to speak with the Director-General of Civil Aviation,” he said.

Achimugu added that another meeting with the unions had been scheduled, expressing the expectation that the engagement would clarify the concerns raised by workers and management’s position.

The NCAA spokesman also cited substantial debts owed by domestic airlines as a factor affecting the agency’s finances, saying the DGCA and the director of Finance and Accounts had briefed staff on the implications of the outstanding liabilities.

He expressed optimism that the agency’s financial position would improve as outstanding payments were recovered.

However, Achimugu said he had yet to receive a comprehensive briefing on the unions’ allegations regarding the accuracy of information provided on airlines’ remittances.