Chinedu Eze
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), has commenced investigation to expose a syndicate allegedly issuing licenses to foreign aircraft maintenance engineers who work for Nigerian airlines at outrageous prices.
The NCAA in a letter reference: NCAA/DOLTS/GEN/VOL.V/22726/2; dated June 29, 2026, titled, ‘Letter of Investigation of Aircraft Maintenance Engineer’s License (AMEL) Number 6520,’ and signed by the Director, Operations, Licensing and Training Standards (DOLTS), Captain D. Spiff on behalf of the Director General, NCAA, it said it discovered irregularities with the application process, procedures and relevant documents including payment concerning the licence and the ratings converted.
According to the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulation (Nig. CARs Part 2), NCAA does not issue full standalone Aircraft Maintenance Engineer’s License (AMEL) to foreign engineers; instead, it validates foreign issued licenses for engineers working on Nigerian-registered aircraft.
It was learnt that the suspected syndicate collects from N500, 000 to N700, 000 to issue this license but the official cost of such license is N50, 000.
“The Aircraft Maintenance Engineer’s Licence number 6520 converted on 16th January, 2026 is currently under investigation. The Authority discovered irregularities with the application process, procedures and relevant documents including payment concerning the licence and the ratings converted.
“The Authority is currently investigating the irregularities with this licence. We wish to offer you an opportunity to submit to the undersigned copies of every application document and evidence of payment leading to the conversion of the licence within seven days following receipt of this letter. By this letter you are not allowed to exercise the privileges contained in the licence. If we do not hear from you within the specified time, we will process this matter without the benefit of your statement,” NCAA said.
THISDAY findings also indicated that some pilots of private jets or in business aviation under the Permit for Non-Commercial Flight (PNCF) allegedly renew their licenses without going through the mandatory simulator training, which would qualify them for the license renewal.
Pilots who fly private jets are expected to renew their operating license at most every one year and are required to pass their Pilot Proficiency Check (PPC) or Operator Proficiency Check (OPC) in a flight simulator.
This was confirmed in the final report of the Ministerial Task Force on Illegal Private Charter Operations and Related Matter published last year.
The report revealed that some of the pilots investigated had not obtained their PPC or OPC in the last 24 to 26 months, which is two to three years, an action that is described by industry insiders as illegal and breach of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations.
Commenting, the Director of Public Affairs and Customer Protection, NCAA, Michael Achimugu, who said that he was unaware of such going on, adding, “NCAA is investigating the matter, it would only take action after the report of the investigation.”
Achimugu said, “If an investigation has been set up, it will be their duty to find out. If they confirm that such is going on, we will take action. So, we should wait for the report of the committee. I don’t want to pre-empt the matter. No report has been made to me. I have never seen a report from pilots and engineers. But if they have reported to the technical people, they have not got back to me on that.”
On the page 85 of the report, which was made available to THISDAY, the Ministerial Task Force noted, “A serious safety gap exists in the design and construct of the pilot licence renewal process, as it leaves out vital information necessary to make the distinction between pilots flying under the PNCF and AOC (Air Operator Certificate) privileges.
The report expressed fear that such illegal concession given to pilots of private jets could be allowed to be extended to pilots of commercial airlines if it was not checked by NCAA.
“Under the current license process, the PNCF pilot could continue to be granted the one-year validation in error despite the change of jobs to commercial operations under the AOC holder. Invariably, this could mean that the pilot would go for simulator re-currency training only once a year, even though he/she now exercises the privileges of the license under an AOC operation,” the report further stated.
It also noted, “From exhaustive interviews and whistle-blower accounts, some institutional stakeholders have been found to engage in somewhat unethical and unprofessional practices bordering on gross misconduct and abuse of office.
“The established disciplinary protocols in the place have most times been undermined by some superior officers trying to cover up the malfeasances.”
THISDAY spoke to the Director of Public Affairs and Customer Protection, NCAA, Michael Achimugu, who said that he was unaware of such going on, but if NCAA is investigating the matter it would only take action after the report of the investigation.
THISDAY also spoke to industry insiders and one of the stakeholders privy to the matter who told THISDAY that the pilots that got waiver to renew their licence allegedly paid as much as N1.5 million.
This is what the source said about the engineers, “We usually revalidate the foreign license of our foreign aircraft engineers. That is what the Nigerian law says. But we found out that instead of revalidating the license some engineers working for other airlines secured Nigerian licences from the possible syndicate at NCAA. They issue them Nigerian licence and collecting money. The danger in this is that suppose they came with fake licence and you exchange theirs with ours. That will constitute a serious breach which may damage Nigerian image in the international aviation circles,” the source said.
Another insider, however, commended NCAA for promptly investigating the matter.
“That shows their commitment to finding out the facts and also it shows that there is no official involvement in whatever that is going,” the insider stated.
