The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) is in serious financial dire straits and has concluded plans to ground airlines that owe it.

The situation of NAMA is so precarious that taking such draconian steps to recover debts owed it is one of the options open to the airspace agency in order to remain financially stable.

It generates its own resources and funds most of its projects from internally generated revenue and only gets assistance from the Federal Government when the projects are beyond its capacity.

Many contractors that had delivered goods or offered critical services to the agency are seen coming to check when their monies would be paid as they are constantly told, “There is no money” or “we don’t have money”. This, they said, have become the sing song of the agency in recent times.

A top official of NAMA, who pleaded anonymity, told Sunday Telegraph at the weekend that the agency would ‘most likely’ issue a press statement on Sunday on the plans of the agency to recoup half of the over N10 billion owed it.

There are indications that the carriers also owe the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) N10 and N20 billion respectively, bringing the debt profile of the airlines to the agencies to over N40 billion.

Virtually all Nigerian carriers are indebted. Aside airlines that are still in operation, many others, including cargo and charter operators that have ceased operations, are also heavily indebted to the agencies.

The source said the measure that is going to be deployed to recover NAMA funds is to deny permission to fly beginning from this week, ‘Recalcitrant operator start up for departure or totally ground the operators’.

The official said: “Airlines and other businesses must pay for the services they are rendered. Pensions and salaries of staff must be paid but this may be difficult if this huge sum is tied down with the airlines.”

Should NAMA go ahead with its plans, travel plans could be disrupted as many who had bought their tickets and fixed their appointments could be left stranded.

But for international airlines that pay for navigational assistance and over fliers, NAMA would have been in more serious financial mess as most domestic airlines are all guilty of not paying their bills.

However, recently, airline operators under the aegis of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) described the debts as “phantom” and a ploy to ground them.

Chairman, AON, Capt. Noggie Meggison, said the operators strongly decry plans to always deny airlines services for their operations or completely ground them as this is likely to force airlines out of business.

Meggison stated that because of the economic hard times of today, airlines have become a soft target and are seen as a cash cow for everyone else to prey on easily.

The agency is facing great difficulty in funding the maintenance of its critical equipment as well as staff remunerations and pensions to its retired personnel.

The debts, which were traced as far back as to 2001, included the ones Nigerian airlines paid from 2001 to 2013 which attracted litigation that was later won at the Supreme Court by the agency.

Apart from the old debts of airlines, the carriers have incurred additional debts that may have risen by over 30 per cent since 2013.

Most times, when the agency takes the decision to ground them, the operators, who have powerful people in government, reach out to them to prevail on NAMA to backpedal.

More often than not, the top government officials often call the Managing Director of the agency to stay action. This action was said to be the norm between 2001 and 2014, leading to accumulation of debts that are becoming almost impossible for the airlines to clear.

NAMA provides very critical services fundamental to flight operations including air traffic control, visual and non-visual aids, aeronautical telecommunication services that enhance commercial, private and military aircraft flying in and out of Nigeria’s airspace.

NAMA owes its retired staff about N15 billion which accumulated over the years and with dwindling revenues due to these debts, it finds it difficult to carry out its obligation as internally generated revenue dependent agency. The agency remits 25 per cent of its earnings to the federation account.

Former Commandant, Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, Grp. Capt. John Ojikutu (rtd) expressed concern over the situation.

Ojikutu called for review of sharing ratio that is giving 58 per cent of tickets sales to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) for doing, ‘nothing’ whereas an agency like NAMA saddled with massive deployment of airspace infrastructure gets lesser.

His words: “NAMA should not get less than 40 per cent of the ticket sales. This is the reason it can’t maintain some of its navigational equipment. Domestic airlines don’t pay navigational charges. If international airlines were not paying, they would have been in a more dire situation.” (Sunday Telegraph)