FG Lifts Dana’s Suspension, Grounds Plane

The Federal Government on Monday night grounded a Boeing MacDonald Douglass 83 plane belonging to Dana Air, which had a technical fault on Saturday in Abuja, but lifted the suspension placed on the carrier’s operating licence as a result of the incident.
The grounding of the plane, the government said, would continue until its United States-based manufacturer, Boeing, recertifies the plane.
The Minister of Aviation, Ms. Stella Oduah, said the government had lifted the suspension placed on the flight operations of the airline, saying Dana was free to operate with other aircraft in its fleet.
The developments came barely 24 hours after the government ordered the embattled carrier to stop operations.
A statement by the ministry said officials of the ministry and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority had met with the management team of Dana Air on Monday in Abuja and “deliberated on some safety issues in connection with the operations of the airline.”
“Dana is to resume normal operations immediately. However, the particular aircraft, which had a snag over the weekend, is to remain grounded until after its air-worthiness has been recertified by Boeing, the manufacturer of the aircraft,” the statement said.
Dana also said in a separate statement that it was pleased to announce that it had been given approval to resume flight operations with immediate effect following “the temporary suspension of our operations on Saturday, March 16, 2013.”