The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has taken the decision to suspend the permit of Mattini Airline Services Ltd following a runway excursion incident involving one of its aircraft. The Challenger CL 601 jet, which departed from Abuja with 15 people on board, overshot the runway while landing at Ibadan Airport on Friday. Fortunately, there were no fatalities in the incident.
Michael Achimugu, the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at NCAA, announced the suspension in a statement on Saturday. The suspension will remain in effect until investigations are completed, and clarifications are made regarding the adherence to the conditions of the Permit for Non-Commercial Flight (PNCF).
Achimugu highlighted that the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) has initiated a safety investigation into the occurrence, while NCAA has begun an economic inquiry into the operation of the aircraft based on the terms and conditions of the PNCF.
The statement also mentioned that the suspension is in accordance with Section 32 (4) of the Civil Aviation Act 2022. Additionally, NCAA has initiated a broader safety and economic audit of all private jet operations in Nigeria to ensure compliance with global best practices.
Meanwhile, the NSIB has deployed a team to investigate the incident, and it has requested assistance from the public in providing any relevant video clips or evidence that can contribute to the investigation. The NSIB emphasized the need to respect the privacy of those involved and cautioned against assuming the cause of the incident until the formal report is released.
This incident follows a crash-landing at the same airport in November 2023, involving a private jet carrying the Minister of Power, Chief Bayo Adelabu.