The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has issued a statement to clarify the airworthiness status of the recently crashed helicopter with registration marks 5N-BQG.
The statement signed by the Acting Director General, NCAA, Captain Chris Najomo was issued in response to a report by an online platform, which raised questions about the helicopter’s registration history.
According to the NCAA, the report by the online platform contained incorrect information, which has been clarified through the authority’s records.
The NCAA emphasized that aircraft can be tracked not only by their registration marks but also by their Manufacturer Serial Number (MSN).
The NCAA provided the following information to correct the wrong information published by Sahara Reporters:
The 5N-BQG S76C+ Helicopter has its MSN as 760486, while the 5N-BGN S76C+ Helicopter has its MSN as 760468.
The S76C+ Helicopter with registration marks 5N-BGN and MSN:760468 was initially registered in 2004 with Aero Contractors as the operator and Capital Aviation Services B.V. as the registered owner.
The registration was re-issued in 2006 when the ownership changed to RBS Aerospace Limited.
The S76C+ Helicopter with registration marks 5N-BGN and MSN:760468 was de-registered by Aero Contractors in 2009 and registered with Transport Canada.
The S76C+ Helicopter with registration marks 5N-BQG and MSN:760486 was initially registered in 2012 with Nestoil Plc as the registered operator and owner.
The registration was re-issued in 2021 as a result of a change of operator to OMNI-BLU Aviation LTD. and ownership change to DANBA Associates LIMITED.
A further amendment was made in 2022 when the ownership changed to EASTWIND AVIATION LOGISTICS SERVICES LIMITED, while maintaining OMNI-BLU as the operator.
The final amendment to the registration was made in 2024 when the operator of the S76C+ Helicopter with registration marks 5N-BQG and MSN: 760486 was changed to EASTWIND AVIATION LOGISTICS SERVICES LIMITED, making them the registered operator and owner of the helicopter.
The NCAA emphasized that, the report could not clearly differentiate the records of the recently crashed EASTWIND AVIATION LOGISTICS SERVICES LIMITED S76C+ Helicopter with registration mark 5N-BQG and MSN: 760486 and the AERO CONTRACTORS DE-REGISTERED S76C+ Helicopter with registration marks 5N-BGN and MSN: 760468.
