NCAA suspends Max Air’s operations indefinitely

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has suspended the domestic operations of one of the airlines in the country, Max Air, indefinitely.

The NCAA suspended Parts A3 and D43 with regard to the operation of Max Air’s Boeing 737 aircraft type with immediate effect.

This was contained in a letter addressed to the airline on Thursday, July 13, 2023.

The letter was signed by the NCAA Director of Operations Training and Licensing, Captain Ibrahim Bello Dambazau, on behalf of the Director-General of Civil Aviation, Capt. Musa Nuhu.

The letter read in part: “The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) hereby suspends Parts A3 (Aircraft Authorization) and D43 (Aircraft Listing) of the Operations Specifications issued to Max Air Ltd with regards to the operations of the Boeing B737 aircraft type in your fleet.

“With the above suspension, you are to immediately suspend the operations of all Boeing B737 aircraft in your fleet.

“The Authority’s action is due to the several occurrences that involved your Boeing B737 aircraft as listed hereunder.”

The occurrences listed in the letter include the Loss of Number 1 Main Landing Gear (MLG) wheel during the serious incident involving a Boeing 737-400 aircraft, registration marks 5N-MBDwhich occurred between Take-off at Yola Airport in Adamawa State, and on landing at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja Nigeria on May 7, 2023.

Another occurrence was fuel contamination of the main fuel tanks of aircraft B737-300, Registration Marks; 5N-MHM, leading to the Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) shutdown on ground at Yola Airport on July 7, 2023.

The third incident was the aborted take-off of Boeing 737-400 aircraft, registration marks 5N-MBD, which occurred at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport due to high Exhaust Gas Temperature (EGT) indication on July 11, 2023.

Also listed was an air return by aircraft B737-300, Registration Marks; 5N-MHM to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) due to duct overheat indication in the cockpit on July 11, 2023.

The NCAA noted that it had constituted a team of inspectors to conduct an audit of Max Air, adding that the audit must be found satisfactory by the Authority prior to considering the restoration of the airline’s operations.