The United States Government has suspended the maiden flight of Arik Air from Lagos to New York for failing to supply the correct address on the cash back bond.
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News of the suspension of the flight, originally scheduled for November 29, is generating discussion in aviation circles, against the backdrop of Nigeria’s search for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Category 1 status, which will allow Nigerian carriers to fly directly into American airspace.
Nigeria for the past three years has been chasing the FAA Category 1 status, which enables the FAA to audit Nigerian aviation, especially the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to ensure safety.
About two weeks ago, FAA officials, led by Martin Ingram, Assistant Division Manager (Eastern Region, Flight Standards Division), and Edward Harashusi (Eastern Region), visited Nigeria in continuation of the audit.
NCAA Director General, Harold Demuren, confirmed the suspension of the Arik flight, but explained that the airline is looking into the matter.
Arik moaned in an advertorial that, “The suspension of this service after nearly seven months of painstaking preparations – including the recruitment of top U.S. attorney, staff, and ‘know your customer procedure’ – comes as a rude shock.
“We believe that our travelling guests, who had enthusiastically booked this service, have a right to know how things came to this sorry pass.
“On November 23, our legal department in the U.S. received a call from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Department, which is also in charge of immigration, advising (Arik) to suspend its scheduled launch because of a wrong ‘address’ in the documentation of its cash-backed bond issued by JP Morgan.”
Arik, known for its poor customer relations, said it believes that the Nigerian aviation authorities will get to the root of the matter, which goes to the heart of reciprocity in international Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASAs).
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