Azman shuts down operation, sends staff on ‘compulsory leave’

• Airline had already sent two of its aircraft to a maintenance facility in Turkey
• Expecting two of the aircraft to be back in Octoberfest
  

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Azman Air Services Limited has asked all its staff to embark on compulsory leave without pay amidst ongoing C-checks on its aircraft and the high cost of operations.

“The decision was made due to a number of factors, including the ongoing C-checks on its aircraft and the high cost of operations,” Nurudden Aliyu, the airline‘s spokesperson, told TheCable newspaper.

“We have temporarily suspended the operation, and it was due to all our 737 we are using for domestic operation are due for C-checks,” Mr Aliyu said.

C-check entails the inspection, overhaul, repair, preservation and replacement of parts of an aircraft, including preventive maintenance, identified as a full block C Check under the airframe manufacturer’s maintenance manuals and planning documents.

Mr Aliyu explained that the airline had already sent two of its aircraft to a maintenance facility in Turkey, but the process was delayed due to a queue in the maintenance hangar.

“The other two we are using here are also due for maintenance, and we are trying to send them for C-checks also. Also, one of the aircraft has achieved 90 per cent completion so we are expecting two of the aircraft to be back in Octoberfest,” Mr Aliyu added.

“The overhead is heavy, so the management decided to put the company on hold.”

According to reports, in an internal memo titled ‘Placement of Leave Without Pay’, issued to staff members and signed by the airline’s Human Resources Manager, Magaji Misau, the airline directed its staff to embark on leave without pay.

“As you are aware, our domestic operations have been put on hold for a while due to the conveyance of our aircraft for C-checks, and the MROs have given a longer time of completion,” the memo reads.

“The management (has) directed to write and communicate its decision that all staff have been placed on leave without pay with effect from August 1, 2023.”

According to the memo, only eight senior staff are exempted from the compulsory leave.

Two years ago, following a series of incidents involving Azman Air Boeing 737 aircraft, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) suspended the operations of all the Boeing 737 aircraft in the fleet of the airline.