Nigerian airlines have been removed from the United States Federal Aviation Administration’s (USFAA) Category One status under the International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program. This delisting results from no Nigerian airline operating direct flights to the United States or vice versa for the past two years.
Currently, Nigeria is not on the list of African countries that meet the USFAA’s Category One criteria. The list includes Egypt, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Morocco, and South Africa, which have been certified to comply with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards.
A new rule by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) mandates that any country whose airlines fail to operate flights to the US under the ‘Open Skies’ agreement for at least two years must undergo recertification for its entire aviation sector. This rule, which took effect a few months ago, has led to Nigeria’s technical removal from the Category One aviation status.
The recertification process involves a thorough review of airport security, airport facilities, airline audits, and the types of aircraft designated for US operations. Until this process is completed, no Nigerian airline can directly operate flights to the US and must instead use a third-country route.
This development may affect the plans of Nigerian carriers such as Air Peace and United Nigeria Airlines, which had intended to launch flights to Washington, D.C., and Houston, Texas. These airlines, and Nigeria’s entire aviation sector, must first complete the necessary certification process before they can operate in the US. Pending recertification, Nigerian carriers remain ineligible to fly directly to the United States.
Madukwe B. Nwabuisi is an accomplished journalist renown for his fearless reporting style and extensive expertise in the field. He is an investigative journalist, who has established himself as a kamikaze reporter.
