Transport Ministry to sanction McDan Aviation for defying GACL directives
The Ministry of Transport has announced plans to sanction McDan Aviation for defying the orders of the Ghana Airport Company Limited over the launch of a Private Jet Service at the Terminal 1 of the Kotoka International Airport [KIA] without the requisite license.
This is according to Yussif Jajah, a member of the Roads and Transport Committee at the Transport Ministry
Mr Jajah noted the disclosure was made by the Transport Minister himself when he was summoned before Parliament over the controversies surrounding the operation of the Private Jet Service by McDan Aviation.
Speaking to the media, he said, “As we speak now he doesn’t have the licence and he’s still now going through the process to acquire it. The Minister says he is going to sanction McDan Industries, at least for defying their orders, and what have you, so a meeting would start next week to see to that.”
Mr Jajah explained that the Committee was informed that McDan Aviation had only been given a private jet license which expired three months after it was issued.
Therefore, the company has to go through the process of not only acquiring a commercial license but all the needed documents to fully operate, he added.
The Ayawaso North MP noted that “to acquire it (the license) and per what we were told, it would take more than a year or two to get it.”
His comment comes after the Ghana Airports Company Limited accused McDan Aviation of breaching the laid down procedures after procuring its license to operate in 2019.
It raised concerns in a letter dated Friday, January 28, 2022, which was the scheduled date for the McDan Group of Companies’ Private Jet Service launch at the KIA Terminal 1 in Accra.
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Despite a GACL directive to call off the event, the company went ahead to hold the ceremony last Friday.
The airport authorities said the McDan Group undertook some activities without approval.
These activities include the commencement of the construction of the private jet terminal without a plan of construction operation approval.
GACL later ordered the newly launched McDan Aviation to suspend its use of the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) until further notice.
In a letter signed on January 31 by the Managing Director of the Airports Company, Yaw Kwakwa, stated that “We note with concern your failure to comply with the directive despite the outstanding issues on the prior terms and conditions for the use and operations of Terminal 1 as a Private Jet Terminal.”
“Management has consequently directed the suspension of your use of Terminal 1 until further notice.”
McDan Aviation later suspended its activities; announcing its decision in a letter to the GACL dated January 31.
McDan explained that “this has become necessary to pave way for us to thoroughly engage your outfit and all the key stakeholders on the way forward.”
Meanwhile, Mr Jajah says the Committee would also summon the CEO of McDan Aviation, Daniel McKorley, to also tell his side of the story and answer some questions they have.
He noted that there were some technical and legal challenges that needed clarification.
“In the documents on one breath, you see the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority or Ghana Airports Company communicating to McDan Shipping Industries, on the other hand, you’d see some communication addressed to McDan Group of Companies, to other communications too, you see McDan Aviation Company. These are technical and legal, and we want to know which company are you dealing with? So these are all things we would have to clarify,” he stated.
