The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has stopped the operations of Dana Air due to its parlous financial state.
The director general of NCAA, Capt. Musa Nuhu who disclosed this in a statement also stated that the airline’s Air Transport Licence (ATL) and Air Operator Certificate (AOC) had also been suspended indefinitely, “with effect from midnight of Wednesday, 20th July, 2022.”
According to Nuhu, the suspension was made pursuant to Section 35(2), 3(b) and (4) of the Civil Aviation Act, 2006 and Part 1.3.3.3(a) (1) of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs), 2015.
The director general explained that the decision to axe the carrier “is the outcome of a financial and economic health audit carried out on the Airline by the Authority, and the findings of an investigation conducted on the Airline’s flight operations recently, which revealed that Dana Airlines is no longer in a position to meet its financial obligations and to conduct safe flight operations.”
However, he said the regulatory agency “acknowledges the negative effect this preemptive decision will have on the airline’s passengers and the travelling public and seeks their understanding, as the safety of flight operations takes priority over all other considerations.”
Meanwhile, Dana said it would abide by the suspension directive “in order to undergo a full operational audit with effect from midnight 20th July, 2022.”
“Operational audits are regulatory and airlines are obligated to suspend their operations when the NCAA calls for it and we understand the impact this suspension will have on our partners, staff, passengers and the general public but we are very confident that we would come out stronger as we have done in the past.
“We wish to assure the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) that we are fully ready and committed to cooperating with them in the course of this audit and to also reassure our customers and partners that we are safe, efficient and reliable,” the airline said in a statement by its spokesman, Mr. Kingsley Ezenwa.
The carrier blamed the development on skyrocketing cost of aviation fuel which sells at N830 per litre, foreign exchange unavailability, and inflation, among others as “contributory factors to this decision.”
The airline therefore craved the “understanding and patience of our customers, travel and business partners,” as it sincerely apologised for any inconvenience “our short absence from the market might cause.”
It however stated that “our customer service team will continue to operate 24/7 to assist affected customers with necessary information on refunds.”
