FLIGHT Dispatchers Association of Nigeria (FLIDAN) has expressed concern over the sluggish implementation of ICAO Document 10106 in Nigeria, noting that numerous airlines have not yet adhered to the necessary organizational and procedural changes for the Operations Control Centre (OCC).
ICAO Doc 10106 establishes contemporary global standards for Operations Control Centers (OCCs), focusing on shared authority between pilots and flight dispatchers, risk-based decision-making, fatigue management for dispatchers, and competency-based training and assessment.
Secretary of the Board of Trustees of FLIDAN, Senior Flight Dispatcher David Olatunji, said Nigeria faces challenges in aviation, including insufficient dispatcher authority, a lack of documented shared decision-making processes, and inadequate competency-based training due to poor compliance with relevant documents.
He spoke at the FLIDAN Annual Conference in Lagos, which was themed ‘Safety and Efficiency: The Flight Dispatcher’s Role.’
Olatunji cautioned that airlines not adhering to standards may face negative outcomes during international audits, such as the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) and the ICAO Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme (USOAP).
He said: “There is also limited use of data analytics for operational control. This gap must be closed urgently. Regulatory pressure is increasing globally, and Nigeria cannot afford to lag behind.
“Non-compliance affects safety, especially in abnormal and emergency operations. Efficiency suffers when OCCs are not structured according to modern standards. Dispatcher professionalism is undermined when the OCC is not aligned with ICAO expectations.”
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has urged operators to include dispatchers in safety reporting, inquiries, investigations, and ongoing safety improvement efforts.
During the event, Director General of the NCAA, Capt Chris Najomo, represented by Director of Operations, Licensing and Training Standards, Captain Donald Spiff, said: “Their unique position enables them to identify operational hazards, contribute to risk assessment, and support informed decision-making before and during operations.”
“We, therefore, encourage operators to actively involve dispatchers in safety reporting, enquiries, investigations, and continuous safety improvement initiatives. The future of aviation will be driven by digital transformation, data analytics, artificial intelligence and increasingly sophisticated operational technologies,” he added.