Aviation professionals have been counselled to raise the standard, professionalism, and efficiency of aeronautical information service (AIS).
Accident Investigations Bureau (AIB) Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer, Felix Abali, who gave the advice, said aviation is undergoing rapid transformation globally and becoming more technologically driven.
He stressed the need for aviation professionals in the country to work in line with global trends, because “there is a growing need for the proper integration of man and machine, including training for effective operation in a seamless environment of zero tolerance or delays in safety critical aeronautical information dissemination.”
Abali spoke in Uyo during the World Aeronautical Information Service Day.
He said the implementation of AIS automation in Nigeria is long overdue but measures are being taken to actualise it.
He reiterated that safety is a huge responsibility for AIS professionals, and urged them to provide quality aeronautical data, saying the effective and efficiency of air navigation cannot be over emphasised.
Abali implored aviation agencies to train and motivate AIS staff for effective service delivery, as human capacity development is a vital solution to the growing cases of human factors which account for most of the accidents and serious incidents in the aviation industry.
He argued that safety is the primary concern of the aviation community, including the military, civil, scheduled and non scheduled flight operations, chartered flights and commercial aviation using any form of aircraft.
Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) Managing Director, Ibrahim Abdulsalam, also stressed the important role of AIS professionals in the safety of the airspace.
He said data processing and management are vital to airspace users hence the work of AIS is taken very seriously.
Abdusalam, represented by his Director of Human Resources, Uwem Akangson, assured that NAMA will continue to support the training of AIS professionals and the agency is finding ways to raise internally generated revenue.
He stated the resolve to complete AIS automation and emphasised team work among staff to lift the agency.
Aeronautical Information Services Association of Nigeria (AISAN) National President, Babatunde Shittu, sought the continuous training and retraining of AIS personnel to help actualise a seamless transition from AIS to a higher system.
Shittu said there is need for AIS personnel to be fully equipped with latest techniques in digital information management to drive the AIS-AIM project faster.
He urged NAMA to design courses and programmes that would enhance the capacity of AIS personnel.
Akangson reiterated the commitment of AISAN to the implementation of aeronautical information management because of the impact on safety of air navigation.
