Director-General of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has indicated of plans to kick in a contingency plan that will help resume the operations of the domestic airlines by the close of day on Tuesday.
The Ghana Air Traffic Controllers Association (GATCA) is currently on a sit down strike, an action that has resulted hundreds of travelers stranded at the Kotoka International Airport and other regional airports.
Air Commodore (Rtd) Kwame Mamphey addressing a press conference on Tuesday disclosed that his outfit is currently working to kick-start a backup plan that will enable flights to resume operation.
“The contingency to kick-in, we do not state how long it will take to get it in place. We are in that phase of getting the contingency in place for the operations to commence very quickly. It takes time for us to activate,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Transport, Dzifa Attivor has met with the striking air traffic controllers at the head office of the GCAA.
In the press conference prior to the meeting, she expressed shock at the move taken by the air controllers.
GATCA had raised concerns of the GCAA facing challenges in the restructuring of the Authority on global standards.
They indicate there is crisis with Togo and Benin on the management of the upper airspaces of the three States and Ghana has not been able to attain FAA Category One.
In a press release, they said: “There is total technical confusion in the Authority with its attendant safety hazards, the blacklisting of Ghana registered offshore cargo planes, and many more.”
Addressing the issue, Dzifa Attivor revealed that the team assigned to tackle the issue was still working on it.
“The president sent me to Togo and Benin to deliver a letter to his colleague presidents and after that we had a meeting at Dakar, Office of the ICAO and a team was put together to resolve the impasse and I believe that is ongoing.”
She indicated GATCA had also raised concerns of the absence of a deputy director general technical of the civil aviation authority. She said the recommendation made by the board has been sent to the president awaiting approval.
Citi Business News has gathered GATCA could possibly extend the withholding of their services to international flights if the issues are not resolved
By: Anim Kwaku Boadu/citifmonline.com/Ghana