NCAA PPL Air Law cheat sheet

Primary legislation: the Civil Aviation Act (2006, as amended) establishes the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) as the regulator and the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB, now NSIB) as the independent accident investigator; the Minister of Aviation issues regulations under the Act.

Nig. CARs structure mirrors ICAO Annexes: Part 1 (general definitions and applicability), Part 2 (personnel licensing), Parts 3–4 (aircraft registration and airworthiness), Parts 5–8 (operations, airworthiness, instruments), Parts 9–13 (air operator certification, maintenance, ground handling), Parts 17–20 (security, dangerous goods, safety management).

ICAO framework hierarchy: the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention, 1944) → 19 Annexes containing Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) → Procedures for Air Navigation Services (PANS) and Regional Supplementary Procedures (SUPPs); Standards are binding on member states, Recommended Practices are desirable.

Article 1 of the Chicago Convention recognises complete and exclusive sovereignty of each state over the airspace above its territory; Article 5 grants non-scheduled flights the right of non-stop transit and landing for non-traffic purposes, subject to state permission.

Article 6: scheduled international air services require special permission or authorisation from the state overflown. Article 8: pilotless aircraft require special authorisation. Article 9: states may establish prohibited or restricted areas on uniform conditions.

Freedom/transit rights: first freedom (overfly without landing) and second freedom (land for non-traffic technical purposes) are exchanged under the International Air Services Transit Agreement (IASTA); the remaining three of the five freedoms require bilateral air services agreements.

Aircraft nationality and registration: aircraft have the nationality of the state in which they are registered (Chicago Article 17); an aircraft cannot be validly registered in more than one state (Article 18); registration marks in Nigeria are prefixed 5N under Nig. CARs Part 3.

Annex 2 (Rules of the Air) sets the standard right-of-way order: balloons, gliders, airships, aircraft towing or refuelling, then all other aircraft - with the lower aircraft giving way to the higher, and head-on or converging rules applied at equal levels.

Annex 13 (Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation) requires an independent investigation and notification to ICAO and to the state of registry, operator, design and manufacture; the sole objective is prevention of accidents and incidents, not apportionment of blame or liability.

Personnel licensing (Nig. CARs Part 2, ICAO Annex 1): a PPL(A) requires the applicant to be at least 17 years old; a CPL(A) at least 18; an ATPL(A) at least 21. A Class 1 medical certificate is required for commercial privileges, Class 2 for a PPL.

PPL(A) experience minima: 40 hours total flight time, including at least 20 hours dual instruction and 10 hours solo, of which at least 5 hours solo cross-country; the skill test is conducted by an authorised examiner.

Logbook and recency: a pilot may not act as pilot-in-command carrying passengers unless within the preceding 90 days they have made at least three take-offs and three landings in the same type or class; night recency requires the same at night.

Privileges limits: a PPL holder may not fly for remuneration or hire, may not act as PIC of an aircraft carrying passengers for compensation, and may not act as PIC in commercial air transport; a CPL permits flying for remuneration subject to the conditions in Part 2.

Medical validity (Annex 1 / Nig. CARs): Class 1 privileges normally valid 12 months for single-pilot commercial operations, reduced to 6 months for pilots over 40 (and 6 months generally for those over 60); Class 2 valid 24 months, reduced to 12 months for holders over 40.

Documents to be carried on board (Annex 6 / Nig. CARs Part 8): certificate of registration, certificate of airworthiness, crew licences, journey logbook, operations manual, and, where applicable, radio station licence and passenger manifest; the PIC is responsible for their validity.

Rules of the air (Nig. CARs Part 4 / Annex 2): VFR meteorological minima in controlled airspace at or above 3 050 m (10 000 ft) AMSL - 8 km flight visibility and 1 500 m horizontal, 300 m vertical distance from cloud; below that, 5 km visibility with 1 500 m horizontal and 300 m vertical separation.

Emergency and interception: an aircraft intercepted by another aircraft must immediately comply with instructions, attempt to establish radio contact, and squawk 7700 if able; the intercepted aircraft's obligation is to follow the intercepting aircraft's signals even if it does not understand them.

Licence validity and currency: a PPL is normally valid for the period stated on the licence (commonly 10 years in Nigeria) but privileges lapse if the medical certificate or recency requirements are not met; a licence may be suspended or revoked by the NCAA for safety or enforcement reasons under the Civil Aviation Act.