By John Ikani
Air Traffic Control (ATC) communicators have lamented that the poor quality of equipment available in airports nationwide negatively affects efficient discharge of their duties.
The operators, under the aegis of National Air Traffic Communicators Association of Nigeria (NACAN), also noted that the shortfall of personnel had made efficient services almost impossible.
According to the President of NACAN, George Nkambo, five airports had no ATC communicator on ground, while Lagos, the busiest airport in the country, was facing personnel shortage too.
ATC communicator is a personnel trained to monitor aircraft movement and communicate with Pilots via radio.
Nkambo said it was frustrating that his members report for duty, but are unable to perform their responsibilities. “When you come to work, you see the backlog of messages that ought to have been transmitted but they are not (due to poor equipment). That gives room for laxity, as if personnel are not ready to work.”
Besides fixing the equipment, he also urged the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) to address shortage of manpower in the department.
He observed that his unit needed additional 300 personnel to join the 176 on ground to cover airports nationwide effectively.
Nkambo disclosed that airports in Jalingo, Bayelsa, Bauchi, Kebbi and Jigawa currently had no communicator, which should not be the case in a modern aerodrome.
He added that Lagos was also facing a shortfall, causing available personnel to get overworked.
“With equipment (aircraft) coming into Lagos and only two persons are on a shift, it will be difficult to offer their functions at the terminal, receiving data from Kano or Abuja stations.
“We have e-flight plans and messages coming from airlines. In Lagos, we have several flights between 11 and 12 midnight. All scheduled-flights turn in their plans for transmission and you require communicators to do that. So, our people get overworked to the detriment of their health,” he said.
