Aviation
Agency holds workshop to boost aviation experts on accident investigation
Banju Group Accord Accident Investigation Agency
The Banju Group Accord Accident Investigation Agency (BAGAIA) held a workshop in Abuja on Monday aimed at enhancing the knowledge of aviation experts on accident investigation.
Commissioner Charles Erhueh
BAGAIA Commissioner Charles Erhueh said the workshop was to further deepen participants’ understanding of security and investigative processes.
State Security Program
“It will further expand the role of interested parties during the investigation in terms of the State Security Program.
“In addition, this will allow us to understand the benefits of using drones in accident investigations, while looking beyond flight recorders.
“Keep in mind that once an accident occurs and the scene becomes contaminated, you should not be there, your actions in most cases derail the investigative process,” he said.
Erhueh said the massive crowd was seen many times at the crash site looting and taking things from the scene, all under the guise of helping.
According to him, the guest speakers will talk about partnering with the right stakeholders such as the airport authority, military, police, national civil defence, construction companies and emergency management agencies.
“Also, how to engage with the communities where the accident occurred to inform them about their role, which is the most critical if we want to get good results.
“These issues and many more are going to be key to what we do and I hope we take some time to assimilate everything and soak up what we have learned professionally in the performance of our duties.
“BAGAIA as an organization, when invited to carry out any investigation, also needs the cooperation of the state of occurrence for things related to the accident or the place of the incident, since sometimes the communication channels are slow.
He said that slow communication sometimes affected the speed at which the investigation began.
Akin Olateru
Mr. Akin Olateru, Commissioner, Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), Nigeria, said the theme of the workshop was “The role of accident/incident investigation in the State Safety Program (SSP) and the workshop of the flight recorder”.
Director of Engineering
Olateru, who was represented by the Director of Engineering, Mr. Muhammed Hashim, said that the content of the workshop would improve the safety aspect of the aviation industry.
He said Nigeria’s airspace has been one of the safest in the world for the past six years.
Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority
According to him, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) does the regulation, while AIB-N does the research.
“When you talk about flight recorders, Nigeria has one of the best laboratories in the world. We recently helped Cameroon recover information from the damaged recorder, something that has never been done in Africa before.
“However, Nigeria was not the country where the accident occurred, but Cameroon; downloading and analysis was done in Nigeria and came to Nigeria thanks to our experience,” he said.
Olateru said that AIB-N did not collect any money for attendance in accordance with AIB’s global rules and regulations.
Sierra Leone
reports that BAGAIA member states are Sierra Leone, Ghana, Nigeria, Cape Verde, Guinea, The Gambia, Liberia and Senegal. (www.news.org)
Edited / Grace Yussuf
Source Credit
Source Credit: NAN
