The Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has said that Aero Contractors’ Aircraft Maintenance Organisation (AMO) in Lagos has the capacity to service approved commercial aircraft operating across West and Central Africa, a development that could significantly reduce airline operating costs and passenger airfares.
The Director-General of the GCAA, Mr Stephen Arthur, made this known after touring the Aero Contractors AMO facilities, noting that reliance on overseas maintenance substantially increases airline expenses.
Arthur explained that ferrying aircraft to Europe or the United States for maintenance adds to costs, which airlines eventually pass on to passengers through higher fares.
He expressed satisfaction with the standard of the facility, commending its modern equipment and highly skilled technical personnel.
“This is unique by all standards. I least expected to see what we witnessed today, especially from this part of the continent,” Arthur said.
According to him, many passengers underestimate the impact of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) activities on airline operating costs, stressing that the absence of local facilities forces airlines to incur additional expenses.
“If such facilities are unavailable locally, airlines incur extra operational costs, which are eventually translated to the paying passenger,” he said.
Arthur added that proximity to maintenance facilities helps airlines cut crew-related expenses, fuelling costs, navigation charges and aircraft downtime, while shorter maintenance periods improve operational efficiency and cost savings.
He described the Aero Contractors MRO as a major boost for Ghana, ECOWAS member states and the wider African aviation industry, urging airlines in the region to patronise the facility.
“It is good news to celebrate, patronise and promote,” Arthur said.
The GCAA boss also confirmed that Ghana is in the process of establishing a national carrier and welcomed Aero Contractors’ existing maintenance presence in Nigeria, encouraging increased utilisation to enable further expansion of services.
“We should encourage airlines to patronise the facility so it can expand and offer more services,” he added.
Earlier, the Managing Director of Aero Contractors, Capt. Ado Sanusi, said the airline, founded in 1959, began operations with oil and gas shuttle services before expanding into scheduled passenger flights and aircraft maintenance.
Sanusi disclosed that Aero Contractors was the first to carry out C-checks on Boeing 737 Classic aircraft in West and Central Africa.
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He added that the company is currently seeking approvals from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to expand its line and base maintenance services.
Sanusi also revealed plans for Aero Contractors to resume flight operations to Accra in the near future.
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