Night Landings at Ibadan Airport/Accident: Challenging Claims of ILS Absence with Compelling Statistics

The Samuel Ladoke Akintola Airport in Ibadan, Oyo State, has a history of flights landing after sunset, lacking field lighting and Instrument Landing Systems (ILS).

This contrasts with claims that the recent accident involving the Minister of Power and nine others on Friday 3rd November, 2023 was due to the absence of landing aids.

The accident has just brought to the fore the need to have this safety facilities installed on the runway because it is the right thing to do as required by safety industry standards.

The airport’s runway is approximately 2.4 km long, operating under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and not requiring additional ground landing instruments, which are more essential in turbulent and bad weather areas.

Statistics show night take-offs and landings between 2021 and 2023, challenging the idea that the lack of airfield lighting and ILS caused the accident.

The figures revealed that between the year 2021 till date, a total of 136 night take-offs and landings were recorded between 6pm-9pm, 9pm-12am and 12am-6am.

A breakdown shows that in 2021, 19 take-off/landing between 6pm-9pm, 3 take-off between 9pm-12am were recorded.

In 2022, take-off/landing 62, between 6pm-9pm with 10 take-off between 9pm-12am and 1 take-off between 12am-6am recorded.

While 2023 thus far, 30 landing/take-off between 6pm-9pm, 11 take-off between 9am-12am.

In a summary on the accident to the Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, Mr. Kabir Mohammed, two hours extension of Aerodromes operation was sought and duly granted by the Airspace Manager and for which diesel was specially procured in reserve for the unscheduled operation and Runway lighting system was on as at the time of the aircraft arrival which prompted the ATC to give clearance for landing to the pilot.

It was also stated that the Air Traffic Control reported the loss in communication with the pilot shortly after landing in the bush, before getting to the paved area of the runway suggesting a likelihood of air mishap for a yet unknown reason but confirmed that the aircraft suspectedly did not get to the landing threshold before landing and veer off into the bush.

The Airport rescue and fire fighting service department was said to have been promptly informed by the ATC on duty and they proceeded to the scene of emergency for rescue operations within the stipulated time of less than 3mins response time as prescribed by the International Civil Aviation Authority Organization, ICAO.

There was no life lost nor any physical harm done to the ten passengers on board including crew members.

The Nigeria Safety Investigation Bureau, NSIB, is investigating the accident, and Aviation stakeholders discussed the need for equipment approval and the ILS issue.

At an Aviation Stakeholders Meeting in Lagos a day after the unfortunate accident at the Ibadan Airport, the minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Mr Festus Keyamo says, the agency in charge of the landing aids across Airports in the country, the Nigeria Airspace Management Agency NAMA, has been purchasing equipment for safe air navigation but was recently discovered that the equipment being purchased were obsolete.

According to Mr. Keyamo henceforth, any equipment to be purchased by NAMA must be subjected to stakeholders approval as to whether the equipment is what is needed or not.

The Managing Director NAMA Engr. Tayib Odunowo also testified to the fact that, the agency has a lot of projects that were not required to carryout their duties.

The Director Operations NAMA, Mr. Mathew Pwajok said, a lot had been done by the agency in Airspace safety.

He listed airports whose ILS have been calibrated, installation of ongoing ones, completed and amongst the airports mentioned Ibadan was missing.

According to him, apart from the absence of the ILS, the airport also do not have airfield lighting system which falls under the purview of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria FAAN.

Mr. Keyamo based on information gathered regarding the Ibadan Airport accident alluded to the fact that, the absence of the ILS at the airport caused the pilot to touch down not on the runway but the bush.

However, the National Association of Air Traffic Engineers (NAAE) has described as false and misleading that obsolete navigational aids and absence of an Instrument Landing System (ILS) at Ibadan airport was responsible for the crash landing of the private jet conveying the Minister of Power and others to the airport

According to a statement signed by the National President of NAAE, Mr. Selzing Miri, airports are broadly classified according to available equipment at the airport.

“Airports are classified as Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) if they have ILS, VOR, DME or any other ground-based navigational aids installed, or classified as Visual Flight Rules (VFR) where pilots operate only by visual cues for takeoff and landing operations”.

According to Miri, VFR airports are designed for operations in good weather conditions where pilots can navigate using visual references saying it is essential to clarify that Ibadan Airport is a Visual Flight Rules (VFR) airport and does not depend on ILS or VOR or any other ground-based navigational aids for takeoff and landing.

“Therefore, the crash of this aircraft at Ibadan Airport cannot to linked to the absence or presence of any navigational equipment.

In another report, it was claimed that the ILS was not calibrated, he said, this is also misleading because what does not exist, that is the ILS, cannot be calibrated.

Miri stated that the preliminary report from the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) mentioned that the incident occurred along runway 22 and involved the aircraft with registration number 5N-AMM, stressing that the report highlights that the control tower lost communication with the aircraft after landing, prompting the timely response of airport emergency services and relevant authorities.

“Contrary to the initial speculation regarding the cause of the crash, the NSIB report does not attribute the incident to the absence of an ILS. Instead, it emphasizes that the aircraft skidded off the runway into a nearby bush. The quick response of the airport’s Aviation Security (AVSEC), Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Services (ARFFS), and other officials ensured the prompt and successful rescue of all passengers and crew members”.

Miri noted that while it acknowledged that having modern Communication, Navigation, and Surveillance (CNS) facilities, including an ILS, could enhance the overall safety and efficiency of an airport, it is crucial to recognize that accidents can result from a combination of factors.

He said a thorough investigation is necessary to determine the root cause accurately adding that blaming the absence of an ILS at a VFR airport oversimplifies the complexities involved in aviation incidents.

The focus should be on a comprehensive analysis of all contributing factors, including weather conditions, pilot actions, and the condition of the aircraft.

While concerns about air navigation equipment and airport facilities are valid, attributing the recent incident at Ibadan Airport solely to the absence of an ILS may not accurately reflect the circumstances, a careful and unbiased investigation is crucial to understanding the complete picture and implementing measures to enhance safety in the aviation sector.

The ongoing efforts to modernize Communications, Navigation, and Surveillance (CNS)/Air Traffic Management (ATM) facilities and the training and retraining of the officers that manned these facilities should be encouraged for the overall improvement of aviation infrastructure in Nigeria.

While investigation is ongoing on the accident by the NSIB, the airport was reopened the next day with four flights operating into the airport.

The first flight operated into the airport at 0722hrs from Lagos with 17passengers and departed for Abuja with 58 passengers at 0806hrs. The second one at 0911hrs with 20 transit passengers and departed with 34 passengers to Abuja at 0939hrs.

The third came in at 1105hrs with 51passengera from Abuja and departed to Lagos with 25 passengers at 1143hrs and the fourth flight at 1346hrs from Abuja with 105 passengers and departed for Abuja with 113pax at 1440hrs.

The airport reopened with several flights, indicating its attractiveness to operators and passengers, calling for safety measures like the installation of necessary landing aids.