The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), has disclosed plans to install Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) station, and Very High Frequency (VHF) radio systems at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu.
It was learnt that the installation, beginning this week, was part of the measures to end blind spots in the eastern corridor of the Nigerian airspace.
Some pilots had recently complained that they “fly blind and deaf” in some parts of the airspace with no communication whatsoever. For instance, when it rains in Lagos, they often lose radio communications after 200 nautical miles away, which is dangerous to safe operations.
The Managing Director of NAMA, Capt. Fola Akinkuotu, however, said the installation of the VSAT and VHF equipment would enhance upper airways communication along the South East corridor using 127.3MHz radiofrequency.
Akinkuotu said the agency’s determination to totally eliminate blind spots from the upper airspace informed these recent deployments.
“We have seen improvement along the North East corridor that we tackled lately in Jos, and we are determined to see that communication is 5/5 in the entire airspace.
“If you can communicate just once instead of five times, the person at the receiving end understands you and is happy just as you are happy.
“If we can get better radios with good clarity, it will lessen the burden and make the job easier for both the air traffic controller and the pilot,” he said.