Nigeria’s Aviation Firefighters are raising alarm over a proposed online training programme for new recruits, warning that the plan could weaken safety standards at the nation’s airports.
In a letter to the Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Mrs. Olubunmi Kuku, the National President of the Nigerian Aviation Fire and Safety Association, NAFSA, Comrade Ugbeikwu Sunday Ugbeikwu, rejected the authority’s decision to introduce a four-week e-learning course for the initial training of airport firefighters.
The association described the proposal as a serious deviation from global best practices, warning that aviation firefighting is a highly practical profession that cannot be effectively taught online.
According to NAFSA, the current plan to conduct most of the course virtually, with only limited practical sessions, could significantly reduce the competence of newly recruited firefighters.
NAFSA explained that international standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO and enforced locally by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, require extensive hands-on training, including live fire drills, rescue simulations and the use of specialised firefighting equipment.
The association also questioned the motive behind the e-learning initiative, suggesting it may be driven more by efforts to cut costs than by safety considerations.
It warned that nearly two hundred firefighters scheduled for the programme may not receive adequate training if the online format goes ahead, potentially affecting emergency response capabilities at airports.
NAFSA is therefore urging FAAN to suspend the online training plan and return to the traditional six-week fully physical training model, insisting that aviation safety must never be compromised.
Reporting By Nosa Aituamen