Ghana Civil Aviation endorses Aero Maintenance Organisation
The Director General, Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Rev. Stephen Wilfred Arthur, has endorsed the Aero Contractors Aircraft Maintenance Organisation (AMO), saying the AMO will effectively service all commercial aircraft operating in West and Central Africa approved for maintenance in the facility. Arthur stated this after the facility tour of the maintenance facility located at […]
The Director General, Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Rev. Stephen Wilfred Arthur, has endorsed the Aero Contractors Aircraft Maintenance Organisation (AMO), saying the AMO will effectively service all commercial aircraft operating in West and Central Africa approved for maintenance in the facility.
Arthur stated this after the facility tour of the maintenance facility located at the Aero head office, General Aviation Terminal (GAT), the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
Daily Trust reports that Aero Contractors is Nigeria’s oldest airline. Its maintenance arm has since been rejuvenated, performance comprehensive check on Boeing 737 aircraft classics.
Speaking after the tour, the Ghana DGCAA hailed the equipment and technical personnel available at the AMO, saying, “This is unique by all standards. And I least expected to see what we have all witnessed today, especially from this part of the continent.”
The Director General linked the cost of aircraft maintenance to the cost of flight ticket, saying that ferrying the aircraft out of the West African region to the United States or Europe increases the cost of maintenance which is eventually passed to the passenger.
He stated that having a major MRO nearby reduces the cost of maintenance as airlines will not pay through their nose for crew expenses, the cost of fuelling the aircraft for long haul flight, navigation cost.
“Many of us out there have no idea how cost of aircraft maintenance affects the overall cost of operation, which eventually translates to the cost of air ticket. This is because it is not just the fuel that is used to fly, but the cost of maintaining, repairing, and overhauling the aircraft.
“If such a facility is not readily available within a certain geographical precinct, it adds more to the cost of the airline’s operations and business. And which eventually will be translated to the paying passenger.
“And so, we as Ghana and other neighbouring states, especially in the ECOWAS region, I believe that it is a great blessing to have this facility being operated, owned and managed by Aero Contractors. It is really good news to celebrate and to promote,” he said.
Rev. Arthur who confirmed that Ghana is in the process of establishing a national carrier, said he was happy that Aero Contractors already has a maintenance facility in Nigeria.
“I think that we should celebrate the existence of Aero MRO and encourage airlines to patronise it.”
The Managing Director/CEO of Aero Contractors Limited, Captain Ado Sanusi, disclosed that the airline was established in 1959 starting with oil and gas shuttle services before it later progressed into scheduled flight services and aircraft maintenance.
“We operated helicopters and then later we started operating fixed wings and we became very, very dominant in oil and gas and then we ventured into the airline business. We are the first again to perform C-check on Boeing 737 Classic in West and Central Africa and since then we have been operating our maintenance facility, providing services to airlines within West Africa and beyond.
“Now we have approvals in a number of West African countries and beyond. Our intention is to get EASA (European Union Safety Agency) approval and FAA (US Federal Aviation Administration) approval for line maintenance and go to even base maintenance. We also have a desire to start flying back to Accra which we will do very soon,” Sanusi said.