The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has disclosed that the pilot and crew members of the private aircraft that landed on a road in Ogwashi-Uku, Delta State, remain in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) as investigations continue into the incident.
Speaking on Politics Today, a programme aired by Channels Television on Thursday, Keyamo described the incident as a serious security breach and said the findings of the investigation would eventually be presented to President Bola Tinubu.
“As I speak with you, it was a security breach, and we are treating it as such. The pilot and the crew are still in DSS detention till today, going through rigorous questioning,” the minister said.
The aircraft had reportedly landed along a road in the Ogwashi-Uku area of Delta State, raising concerns about aviation safety and security protocols.
Addressing concerns about the safety of Nigeria’s airspace, Keyamo insisted that the country’s aviation sector remains among the safest in Africa, noting that isolated incidents should not overshadow broader improvements within the industry.
“If you take the volume of air travel that happens in Nigeria vis-à-vis these isolated incidents, then you will realise that we are dealing with less than one per cent of one or two incidents here that did not even result in fatalities,” he said.
The minister also revealed that Nigeria recently achieved its highest rating ever in the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) audit of aviation safety and oversight standards.
“Since 1960, it is under President Bola Tinubu’s administration that we have scored the highest in terms of International Civil Aviation Organisation audits. For the first time in history, we scored 91.4 per cent this year in terms of our safety and oversight standards,” he stated.
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Keyamo further disclosed plans for the construction of a superhighway behind the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos as part of efforts to ease traffic congestion and improve access to the facility.
According to him, the proposed road project, which is expected to be executed through a public-private partnership arrangement, will connect the Iyana Ipaja area to Mafoluku through the rear section of the airport.
“Lagos State is coming up with a massive plan. There will be a bypass that will run behind the airport and come out around the Mafoluku area,” he explained.
On the issue of debts owed by domestic airlines, Keyamo said the government was making efforts to recover outstanding payments while also recognising the operational challenges facing airline operators.
He revealed that one airline alone owed the government approximately ₦14 billion and noted that aviation agencies require adequate funding to continue providing essential services.
“We understand their problems, but government must also earn revenue,” he said.
According to the minister, several airlines have already begun making payments following recent discussions with the government.
“I called a meeting and appealed to them to make a schedule for paying these debts, and in the last three weeks many of them have paid about 10 per cent of what they owe,” he added.
Keyamo also indicated that more financially unviable airports across the country could be concessioned as part of broader reforms aimed at improving efficiency within the aviation sector.