NCAA Deploys National Aviation Safety Reporting System for Flight Operations

Chinedu Eze

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has deployed national aviation safety reporting system for both mandatory and voluntary reports by those involved in flight operations in the country.

The Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) receives, processes and analyzes voluntarily submitted incident reports from pilots, air traffic controllers, dispatchers, cabin crew, maintenance technicians crew and others who are expected to report occurrences in the course of their duties.

In other words, the authority has given access to those involved in airline operation to file reports to it in easy and convenient manner.

The deployment was announced in All Operators Letter (AOL) referenced NCAA/DG/AIR/11/16/341 dated 25th August, 2025  and addressed to all aviation stakeholders and the general public and signed by the Director General of Civil Aviation, Captain Musa Nuhu.

This is a follow up to NCAA’s establishment of a robust Safety Data Collection and Reporting System (SDCPS) called SMS Pro (www.ncaasms.com) that would bring Nigeria to full compliance with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs).

NCAA explained that the SMS Pro system is web-based software which is user-friendly and mirrors the  SSP & SMS (State Safety Programme and Safety Management System) ICAO-recommended framework comprising safety policy, Safety Risk Management Safety Assurance and Safety Promotion.

“It allows for full integration of the whole aviation industry such that each service provider has customized handles issued by the authority, to submit reports into the system,” the statement said.

NCAA further explained that Annex 19 to the Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation and the Civil Aviation Act 2022 mandate the implementation of Aviation State Safety Programme.

It added, “Specifically, Annex 19 SARPs (Standards and Recommended Practices) mandates as follows: “5.1.1 States shall establish Safety Data Collection and Processing Systems  (SDCPS) to capture, store, aggregate and enable the analysis of safety data and safety information. 5.1.2 States shall establish a mandatory safety reporting system that includes the reporting of incidents. 5.1.3 States shall establish a voluntary safety reporting system to collect safety data and safety information not captured by mandatory safety reporting systems.”