Nigeria Risks Losing Airspace Surveillance Service

Engr. Farouk Ahm Umar, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), expressed concerns that Nigeria is at risk of losing its airspace surveillance service due to the obsolete state of its total radar coverage.

The TRACON (Terminal Radar Approach Control) equipment, which began deployment in 2008 and was completed in 2010, is facing challenges as it has become outdated and lacks spare parts. The life span of high-tech equipment is typically around ten years, and since the TRACON equipment began to go out of fashion in 2014, the country has struggled to upgrade to more sophisticated technology.

This multibillion-naira project, commissioned in 2001, involves nine radar sites and is crucial for enhancing air safety by providing full radar surveillance across Nigerian airspace. During a visit by the new Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mahmoud Adam Kambari, Umar outlined the urgent need for attention to the surveillance service and reaffirmed the ministry's commitment to working closely with NAMA.