Ing. Charles Kraikue
THE DIRECTOR General of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Ing. Charles Kraikue, has hinted of the launch of a home-based carrier for the country soon.
According to him, the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority has already granted a licence to the carrier, which is at the last stage of securing air operator certificate to commence operation.
Ing. Kraikue revealed this to journalists on the sidelines of a breakfast meeting held by the GCAA with its stakeholders in Accra last week.
“What I can say is that as the regulator we assist government in the processes, what we have done is that the home-based carrier has been given air carrier licence by the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority. They are at the last stage of getting the air operator certificate, which is the last stage of our processes and hope that very soon, the home-based carrier would be launched,” he said.
He stated that the operation of the home-based carrier was a partnership between government and some private entities.
The meeting was expected to, among other things, discuss issues affecting the sector especially, in health emergencies that had to be dealt with in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic two years ago.
He said discussions also included the high cost of airfares which passengers had to pay, as well as safety and issues on air traffic services.
“We want them to bring their cost breakdown so that we can discuss with them, to know what is contained in the cost so we can discuss if there is a way we can reduce charges to help the whole industry,” he noted.
He said his outfit was also collaborating with the Ministry of Transport as a partner, to develop a master plan to improve the sector.
Citing an example of a regulatory measure in the sector, Mr. Kraikue mentioned that GCAA had engaged the military, national security and Airforce as partners, to enforce safety and security directives to help make the airspace incident-free.
He indicated that the National Drones Safety Committee, as part of its mandate, was expected to sanction drone users who flouted the directives pertaining to their operation.
“We have thousands of drones in the country and these directives guide them in their operations. We are coming out with a new technology to enable the aviation industry work well with drone users. Drone is a technology that is also useful which we cannot do away with it, so the new technology will help us to be able to integrate the use of drones in our air space,” he added.
Touching on safety and security as well as adherence to standard recommended practices, he said Ghana emerged number one during an audit for flight information regions.
He noted that Ghana earned the highest point of 89.89 per cent, beating South Africa and Egypt.
“As you are aware, for the past ten years, our airspace has not experienced any serious incident or accident, and we want to maintain that going forward. We are improving on equipping the airspace for a modern facility, modern equipment so that our airspace will be safe for us,” he stated.
This feat, he said, has not only given them recognition in the industry but has also propelled them to continue to improve on their safety standards.
The meeting brought together stakeholders from the airlines as well as other notable players in the aviation industry.
Eloina Baddoo, a representative of the board of airlines, also assured members of the board’s commitment to protect the interest of airlines in national and international matters, as well as continue to provide a forum for members to discuss issues of common interest.
BY Ebenezer K. Amponsah