The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has revoked the Air Operator Certificates (AOCs) of Eastwind Aviation Logistics Services Limited and Omni-Blu Aviation following violations of aviation regulations.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, the NCAA cited breaches of Part 1.2.1.5 of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs), which prohibits falsification, reproduction, or alteration of applications, licenses, certificates, logbooks, reports, or records.
“The Authority has determined that both Omni-Blu Aviation and Eastwind Aviation are in violation of Part 1.2.1.5 of Nig. CARs. Part 1.2.1.5(b) mandates that such fraud results in the revocation of the certificate,” the NCAA stated.
Consequently, the AOCs OBA/AOC/12-15/002 (Omni-Blu) and EAL/AOC/03-24/001 (Eastwind Aviation) have been immediately revoked.
This action follows several incidents involving the affected airlines. On October 24, 2024, an Eastwind Aviation helicopter, carrying eight passengers, crash-landed off the coast of Bonny Finima in the Atlantic Ocean, with no survivors. Similarly, on April 18, 2021, an Omni-Blu Aviation helicopter, operated by the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG)‘s Enoch Adeboye, was grounded by the NCAA over safety concerns.
In a related move, the NCAA has announced a three-month suspension of Max Air operations, effective January 31, 2025. This follows the crash-landing of a Max Air aircraft at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, after it lost its landing gear tyre during touchdown. Despite the incident, all passengers and crew were safely evacuated.
The NCAA stated that the suspension will allow Max Air to conduct an internal review, while the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) has launched an investigation into the matter.
