Nation�s Aviation Status Restored

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the body responsible for the safety of civil aviation, will soon restore Ghana�s aviation status to FAA Category 1 status. This is because presently, Ghana is working closely with the FAA to resolve all decencies in safety and security oversight as a precursor to the FAA Category 1 Audit, which will subsequently lead to the country�s quest for the restoration of its status from FAA Category II to I. According to the Minister of Transportation, Mike Hammah, government is committed to ensuring that Ghana is seen as a shining example of first class aviation safety and security environment. The Minister made this known in a speech read on his behalf at the opening of the Co-operative Development of Operational Safety and Continuing Airworthiness Programme (COSCAP) and the 11th plenary meetings of Banjul Accord Group (BAG) organized by the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), in Accra. He noted that �with the Oil and Gas discovery and exploitation currently underway in Ghana, aviation activity is gradually rising and, therefore, the extra efforts being made by the GCAA to implement the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and FAA CAT 1 action plans could not have come at a better time.� In 1997, four West African countries, including Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana and Nigeria and 9 other airlines met in Banjul to map out strategies for accelerating the implementation of the objectives of the Yamoussoukro Declaration as well as enhancing safety within the sub-region. The group called itself BAG, and to achieve the objectives, embers signed a Memorandum of Understanding to promote cooperation and solidarity between states in the field of air transport. The current membership comprises of Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. In his speech, the Director-General of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Air Cadre Kwame Mamphey (Rtd), stated that it has come to a point where industry players in the sub-region need to have a strong voice in matters on aviation safety and security. He reiterated that the time had come for industrial players to confidently make their voices heard on the global platform. He emphasised that the issue of flight safety cannot be achieved on a silver platter unless they work as a strong regional grouping to ensure safety.