The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has responded to reports about the delisting of Nigerian airlines from operating in the United States. NCAA Acting Director General, Capt. Chris Najomo, addressed the issue in a statement on Monday.
He explained that Nigerian airlines were barred from operating in the U.S. due to the country’s loss of its category one status certification. This situation may have impacted Air Peace and United Nigeria Airlines, which were scheduled to fly to Washington and Houston, Texas.
However, Najomo clarified that the delisting was not related to any safety or security deficiencies in Nigeria’s aviation oversight system. Instead, it was due to Nigerian airlines’ inability to maintain direct flights to the U.S. over the past two years.
No Nigerian operator has provided service into the United States using a Nigerian registered aircraft within the 2 years preceding September 2022, so it was expected that Nigeria would be de-listed as were other countries who fell within this category.
“Nigeria was, therefore, de-listed since 2022 and was duly informed of this action in 2022.
“Nigeria has undergone comprehensive ICAO Safety and Security Audits and recorded no Significant Safety Concern (SSC) or Significant Security Concern (SSeC) respectively”, he added.
