FG Approves Aviation Security Personnel To Start Carrying Arms

The Federal Government has approval the bearing of arms by personnel of Aviation Security (AVSEC) to enhance  the National Civil Aviation Security
Programme (NCASP).

The approval has secured the support of the Aviation Round Table Safety Initiative   (ART).

The President of ART, Mr Gbenga Olowo, said on Wednesday in Lagos that the primary objective of AVSEC was the protection and safety of passengers, crew, ground personnel, aircraft and facilities serving the civil aviation.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, recently announced that the AVSEC officials at the airports  would start bearing arms within the next three months.

He, however, noted that the participation of other security agencies in the sector for the same purposes was inevitable. Olowo said: “Consequent to this approval, we strongly advise a review of the airport security architecture to cover elements of the various security agencies which will now form the new organogram.

“This will eliminate inter agency rivalry, foster cooperation, provide common platform to asses measure of effectiveness, process operational  effectiveness and after action plans.’’ He, however, advised that the other security agencies should administratively remain under their parent agencies under the operational command and control of  the new Airport Security Architecture.”

He further advised the government to ensure that selected personnel to bear arms were properly trained and tested in rudiment areas of arms handling, standard armoury and trained armourer for safe keeping of ammunition.

According to him, necessary procedure for issuance, retrieval and accountability of expended rounds if necessary, should also be put in place.

“In the 90s, we delegated and rotated the heads of security agencies serving in the airports to supervise and control night operations which is akin to the United States Transportation Security Agency (TSA) model.

“Security threats have evolved and we as a nation are challenged to find the nexus and best fit security architecture, as our security challenges cannot be the same with other nations.” (NAN)

African airlines pose a 6.0% rise in RPKs in September

The International Air Transport
Association (IATA) has announced global passenger traffic results for September showing that demand (measured in revenue passenger kilometers, or RPKs) rose 5.5% compared to the same month in 2017.

This was a slowdown from the 6.4% growth recorded in August year-over-year. Capacity climbed 5.8% and load factor slipped for the first time in eight months, down 0.3 percentage point compared to the year-earlier period, to 81.4%.

IATA estimated that impacts from severe hurricane and typhoon activity in September shaved around 0.1-0.2 percentage point off expected growth. However, even after accounting for these impacts, monthly traffic demand was below the 6.7% year-to-date pace.

“While September’s traffic growth was in line with the long-term average, it represents a moderation compared to recent months. This is likely owing to the anticipated reduced demand boost from lower airfares due to rising airline cost pressures, particularly fuel. Heightened uncertainty about trade policies and mounting protectionist policies may also be having an impact,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s Director General and CEO.

African airlines posted a 6.0% rise in RPKs in September, down from 6.8% in August. Capacity rose 4.9% and load factor edged up 0.8 percentage point to 74.6%. The healthy growth is taking place against an increasingly challenging economic backdrop for the region’s largest economies, South Africa and Nigeria.

Other international Passenger Markets

International RPKs climbed 4.9% with airlines in all regions recording growth compared to 2017. Total capacity climbed 5.1%, and load factor dipped 0.1 percentage point to 81.2%.

Asia-Pacific airlines’ traffic rose 5.4% in September compared to the year-ago period. This was down from 7.4% annual growth in August. The steep decline in part reflects the impacts of typhoon activity in the region including the multi-day closure of Kansai International Airport. Capacity increased 4.3%, and load factor climbed 0.9 percentage point to 79.2%.

European carriers saw September RPKs rise 5.2% over September 2017, in line with August growth of 5.4%. However, the upward trend in seasonally-adjusted demand has slowed considerably since early 2018. Capacity climbed 4.9% and load factor edged up 0.2 percentage point to 87.0%, which was the highest among regions.

Middle East carriers had a 1.8% rise in demand, which was a four-month low. As in previous months, the volatility in the region’s growth rate mainly reflects the developments in 2017 such as the cabin ban on large portable electronic devices and the proposed travel bans to the US. Capacity rose 5.3%, and load factor fell 2.4 percentage points to 72.3%.

North American airlines experienced a 5.0% rise in demand in September,  which was an increase over 3.7% year-over-year growth recorded in August. Capacity rose 5.4% and load factor fell 0.3 percentage point to 80.8%. Strong momentum in the US economy is helping underpin a pick-up in international demand for airlines in the region.

Latin American airlines’ demand surged 7.0%, strongest among regions and well above the 4.4% growth recorded in August. Traffic is staging a modest recovery from softness over the summer months that coincided with the general strikes in Brazil. Capacity climbed 9.8% -- also the biggest increase among regions -- and load factor fell 2.1 percentage points to 80.3%.

Istanbul New Airport Ready to Become World’s Busiest

Istanbul Airport officially
opened its doors to travellers with two runways, stretching 3,750 and 4,100 meters long, going into service. Once fully completed, it is expected to become world’s largest airport.

It is projected to handle up to 90 million passengers by 2021, with further growth plans up to 200 million.

For the comparison, the present world’s busiest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, handled 103.9 million passengers in 2017.

Thus, the new Istanbul Airport is set to deal with a passenger traffic twice as big as in Atlanta last year.

Reuters report that the flagship carrier, Turkish Airlines, now says only some flights to Ankara, Izmir and Antalya, as well as international flights to northern Cyprus and Azerbaijan, will be using the new airport. Its other routes will remain at Ataturk for the rest of this year.

During the opening ceremony,
Turkey’s president Erdogan highlighted the importance of the new aviation hub not only for the country itself but also for the whole region. Also, the president told that the airport will impact European air space as it will serve a number of intercontinental flights.

All the works at the airport are expected to be finished until 2028.

Kaman K-MAX “Aerial Truck” Cargo Helicopter With Two Crossing Blades

The Kaman K-MAX is the world's first helicopter specifically designed and certified for external lift operations. The external cargo load helicopter was
developed by Kaman Aircraft and designed to lift a payload of over 6,000 pounds . That is more than the helicopter's empty weight and almost twice as much as the "Bell 205" helicopters.

It uses a unique single-engine double-rotor system in which two intermeshing rotors (synchropter) cross each other. This eliminates the need for a tail rotor found in conventional helicopters that is designed to hold it straight and to prevent it from spinning around in the opposite direction of the main rotor blades.

The K-MAXs two opposite-spinning and crossing rotors ensures a high lift performance in hot and high conditions than conventional helicopter. The K-MAX can be parked in a narrow area by aligning the blades sideways instead of crossed.

It uses an average of 85 gallons or 321.7L of fuel per hour during lift operations and cost $1,200 (N436k) per flight hour to operate.

It has a maximum airspeed of 185 km/h with an external load and 148.2 km/h without it . The 7 - 8.5 million dollars helicopter is used by firefighters, construction firms
and the military.

A self-flying or pilot-less K-MAX version was jointly developed by Lockheed Martin and Kaman.

It was designed to be a life saver as it can take supplies and equipment to battle locations (especially in Afghanistan with over 600 unmanned missions and over more than 700 flight hours) and also bring loads back to the main base, thereby reducing the amount of ground convoys.

Toni Ukachukwu appointed AviaDev’s Africa director

Aviation Development (AviaDev) today announced the appointment of Toni Ukachukwu as the new Africa Aviation Director of AviaDev.

Ukachukwu is the Founder/Chief Executive of Aviators Africa, a resource integrated media and marketing company servicing the Africa’s travel and tourism sectors.

He currently function as the
Editor-In-Chief of the company’s premium quarterly publication, the Aviators Africa Magazine, that solely reports the activities in the Africa’s aviation industry.

He is also the Nigeria Regional Manager of Africa Business Travel Association (ABTA) where he is overseeing the affairs of the association in the region.

Toni co-founded Aviators Africa Academy, a social enterprise aimed at inspiring the next Africa’s generation of aviation and aerospace professionals towards
mitigating the anticipated manpower shortfall in Africa aviation industry based on Boeing and Airbus 20 year outlooks, with Jon Howell.

He has been leading Aviators Africa Academy team to organise outreaches, workshops, and conferences across African cities (Cape Town South Africa; Accra, Ghana; Lagos, Nigeria, and
Kigali, Rwanda).

As the Africa Director, Toni will lead AviaDev’s commercial strategy, with responsibility for revenues and operations across advertising and other areas.

He will report to Jon Howell, Chief Executive of AviaDev, and will work closely with Juraj Toth, AviaDev’s Director, Europe.

According to Jon Howell, Toni Ukachukwu brings unrivalled passion for Africa aviation.

Airbus Launches Report On Future Of Aerospace Technologies In Africa

Airbus Launches Report On Future Of Aerospace Technologies In Africa

Airbus has released The Great Enabler: Aerospace in Africa – a White Paper on the role of aerospace technologies and
their impact on socio-economic
development in Africa.

The extensive report looks at how
different segments of the industry can address a core set of challenges on the continent by: increasing access to healthcare; enhancing food security by
making African agriculture more
competitive and sustainable; promoting education, training and innovation; empowering businesses with innovative
products and solutions; and breaking down barriers to the movement of people and goods across Africa.

The report was officially launched at a special summit convening African government officials, policymakers, business leaders, entrepreneurs, intergovernmental bodies and multilateral
development organisations in Toulouse, France.

“The aerospace industry offers solutions to many of the socio-economic challenges Africa is facing on the path to sustainable
development. A paradigm shift from thinking about aerospace as an isolated industry to a key enabler of socio-economic change is necessary to realise its benefits for a prosperous future. That is what this White Paper is aiming at, by highlighting different ways in which aerospace technology can support social and economic development in Africa,” says Mikail Houari, President Airbus Africa Middle East. On manufacturing and industrialisation, the report notes: “Many African countries
are final consumers in the global
aerospace value chain. Joining the ranks of producers in this value chain is challenging for many but not impossible.

The examples of Africa’s current leaders in aerospace – South Africa, Tunisia and Morocco –demonstrate the complexities but also the opportunities for African countries to develop aerospace manufacturing and industrialisation capacity. Key among these opportunities
is Africa’s potential demographic dividend, which will be achieved by investing in its youthful and increasingly techno-savvy
population.”

The report also states that aerospace technology such as precision farming could potentially aid agriculture on the continent by enabling farmers to produce more with less.

The report also stresses the need for clear government policies to harness the power of aerospace technology, concluding with key recommendations on human capital development, partnerships and financing.