The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has suspended all Asky Airlines flights to Nigeria after the airline transported a passenger into the country from Liberia that was infected with the Ebola virus.
Benedict Adeyileka, the Acting Director-General of NCAA, announced the decision in a statement issued by the General Manager, Public Communications of NCAA, Fan Ndubuoke.
Ndubuoke stated that the regulatory authority had to impose the ban to protect Nigerians from the Ebola virus outbreak in parts of West Africa.
Adeyileka also stated that Asky staff were invited to explain how the infected passenger was allowed to be transported, but that they could not offer any conclusive evidence on the matter.
Adeyileka stated that Asky was in violation of Article 14 of the Chicago Convention (1944), which concerns precautions against the spread of infectious diseases by aircraft.
The ban follows Arik Air’s self-imposed withdrawal of flights to Liberia and Sierra Leone, which are currently the principal sources of the Ebola outbreak.