The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has announced the suspension of operations by a local airline, Max Air, following a burst tyre in one of the airline’s aircraft on Tuesday night in Kano in northern Nigeria.
The NCAA announced on Wednesday that it had commenced organisational risk profiles for each scheduled airline, including Max Air, and that the exercise was nearing conclusion.
A Max Air B734 aircraft with registration mark 5N-MBD had a tyre burst on landing at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport on Tuesday night and this would be the third incident in three months involving the Max Air airplanes.
It was gathered that the 53 passengers in the aircraft disembarked unhurt and the aircraft was removed from the runway of the airport by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria.
Although the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau has commenced an investigation into the cause of the incident, the NCAA ordered that the airline be suspended for three months.
In a statement, the NCAA said that it would provide the required support to the NSIB in unraveling the cause of the incident.
“It must be stated that the specific cause(s) of this incident can only be established after the NSIB has conducted its investigation.
“It is instructive to note that the NCAA had commenced organisational risk profiles for each scheduled operator, including Max Air, which is nearing its conclusion. However, as a result of this incident, Max Air is suspending its domestic flight operations for a period of three months with effect from midnight, January 31, 2025, to allow for an internal appraisal of its operations by its management,” the statement said.
It added that during the 90-day period, the NCAA will conduct a thorough safety and economic audit on Max Air and that the resumption of Max Air’s domestic flight operations will be predicated on the satisfactory completion of this audit.
GIK/APA