Accra, June 3, GNA - Mr Michael Kofi Boampong, Chairman of Parliamentary Select Committee on Transport, on Thursday expressed concern about the challenges facing the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), especially encroachment on its lands.

"I would meet members of the committee to resolve the issue of encroachment with the Lands Commission," he said. Mr Boampong disclosed this to Ghana News Agency, after a visit to GCAA in Accra. The visit afforded members of the committee insight into activities of GCAA, their challenges and how to solve them. They toured the Control Centre, Control Tower, Electronic Message Switching Room, Meteorological Office and Aviation Training Academy. Mr Boampong said with the vital role played by GCAA in national development, there was the need to ensure that it had available resources to operate.

He said GCAA could operate efficiently and effectively when it had enough funds through the acquisition of a fair percentage of Airport Passenger Service Charge (APSC). "We would work hard to get Act 678 amended, to enable GCAA to obtain an appreciable percentage of APSC. Currently, it does not retain anything from APSC," he said.

However, Mr Boampong said he was impressed with the operations of GCAA, and looked forward with great anticipation to the re-instatement of GCAA to the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) Category 1 rating, which GCAA lost some years ago.

Air Commodore Kwame Mamphey, Director General of GCAA, said GCAA had over the years been going through several phases of development which in the long term, made airlines more and more comfortable with flights to and from the country.

He said increase in the number of airlines, both local and foreign, operating from Kotoka International Airport (KIA), as well as several others waiting to be licensed to operate at KIA, bore testimony to the confidence that had been built within the potential publics and clients of GCAA, due to the high standards it had maintained. The GCAA Director General said security at KIA was not being compromised in the least.

"We are doing our best to ensure that everyone in aviation has a good understanding of his importance in our quest to make KIA an aviation hub," he said.

On the oil find and its effect on aviation in the country, Air Commodore Mamphey said there were plans to enhance airstrips and built more where necessary throughout the country. "Definitely there would be a lot of employment in aviation when activities concerning the oil find begin," he said He expressed optimism that GCAA could retain its FAA Category 1 status, adding; "We just have to keep working harder and harder for that dream to be realised again".

Air Commodore Mamphey said some challenges facing GCAA were encroachment on its lands. "This is a highly technical environment where we cannot in the least compromise standards. That is why our requests should be fulfilled, "he added. He called for frequent interaction between the committee and GCAA. 3 June 10