By Chuks Okoh
The Nigerian Civil Aviation authority (NCAA)has cleared the air on an Overland Airways incident. A statement said Overland Airways, operating with ATR 72 aircraft with Registration no. 5N-BPE on scheduled service from Ibadan to Abuja departed as scheduled in the morning of 7th April,2014.
Fifteen minutes after take off,the Pilot-in-Command (PIC),Capt.Modalitso Kadzeya heard a pop sound on the right wind shield at an Altitude of 140ft.
The statement from Mr Sam Adurogboye deputy general manager media, said it was
however instructive to note that the wind shield heater was on at that time. He said the Pilot according to Standard and Recommended Practices (SARPs) promptly switched it off.
“At Altitude of 150ft,it was noticed that the crack had widened.The PIC immediately descended to 120ft and the crack stopped progressing.To uphold the rule of safety as demanded by the regulatory authority, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority,Capt. Kadzeya made a professional air return to Lagos where all the 38 passengers and 4 crew on board disembarked safely”
Adurogboye said while on ground,the Maintenance Engineer made an on the spot physical assessment of the damage and observed that only the outside and middle layers of the wind shield were affected.
The defect was instantaneously entered into the Tech Log and subsequent to regulations he was directed to forward a Mandatory Occurrence Report (MOR) to the Authority.
According to him, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) regime of zero tolerance on safety was still subsisting and assured all the passengers that the airspace was safe.
Adurogboye explained NCAA has provided an enabling environment for all the air operators to pursue their flight operations by ensuring comfort for passengers while full compliance with the rules will not be compromised.
