FEDERAL Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has disclosed it has received the federal government’s permission to boost its workforce with additional 720 staff.
The agency said the new intake would be mostly deployed in critical areas around the airside of the airports’ runways in order to boost safety around the facilities across Nigeria.
FAAN managing director Saleh Dunoma said as a result of increase in threat to airports and flight operations, the airports management authority is putting appropriate measures and equipment in place to forestall any threat to aircraft operating in and out of the airports.
Dunoma spoke at the opening ceremony of three days workshop to mark the Murtala Muhammed Airport 2015 Safety Week where he explained that FAAN places premium on safety and urged participants to plan ahead to avoid accidents.
Guest Speaker and FAAN director of airport operations, Capt. Henry Omeogu, who also represented the MD said the safety week is to provide awareness to stakeholders and travellers on the need to observe safety culture at the airport environment.
Omeogu frowned at the indiscriminate posting of untrained personnel by the airport authority and airlines to the airside as these personnel are nothing but hazards that may cause serious and regrettable accidents.
He charged the staff to carry out periodic and daily inspections and audit of movement areas and directed all airport managers to urgently set up local runway safety teams to prevent incidents of incursion and excursions on the runway.
With the theme ‘ Airside Safety, the Very Essence of Aviation’, various speakers harped on the need for constant interface among stakeholders to promote safety around the airside.
