GCAA BOSS QUITS

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu 

Monday, June 23, 2014

Director-General of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Air-Commodore (Rtd.) Victor Kwame Mamphey, has resigned from the authority.

He reportedly handed-in his resignation to the GCAA board chaired by Air Vice-Marshal Christian Edem Dovlo.

A source at the GCAA to Daily Guide that the experienced pilot did not assign ‘much reasons’ for his resignation, except to say “he wanted to take a rest.”

The board has subsequently approved the resignation, which is expected to take effect from Monday, June 30, 2014.

The source said he is likely to hand over to Abdulai Alhassan, GCAA’s Deputy Director-General in charge of Finance and Administration who is said to be President John Mahama’s classmate.

Air-Commodore (Rtd.) Mamphey who has been in the aviation industry for about four decades, was appointed Director-General of the GCAA in 2009 and has been credited for overseeing what many believe is the transformation and growth of the aviation industry.

Under his tenure, the domestic airline industry grew rapidly and international carriers flying to Ghana consolidated their positions.

Currently, about 42 scheduled flights ply their services at the Kotoka International Airport and led GCAA to host the 23rd African Civil Aviation Commission Plenary Session in Accra in April, 2013.

He is also credited with leading the GCAA to generate revenue for construction of a multi-purpose training facility at the KIA enclave to train aviation professionals in Ghana and the sub-region. The seven-storey training academy and office complex is to be completed by August at a cost of US$10million.

The GCAA, under his stewardship, was named the 2013 African Airlines Association Service Provider of the Year at the 45th Annual General Meeting and Summit held in Mombasa, Kenya.

On the issue of safety he has ensured that Ghana’s airspace is safe and secure, winning the confidence of international carriers.

Ghana is considered one of the safest places to fly to in the West African sub-region. Airline accidents under Air Commodore Mamphey’s tenure have been limited, except for the Allied Air Crash in June 2012 — which investigations blamed on the laxity of the pilot — and the recent helicopter crash in the Western Region.

The GCAA during Cmdr. Mamphey’s tenure of office has acquired and installed a new Instrument Landing System (ILS) for KIA – after the Allied Air aircraft over-shot the KIA runway and damaged the existing one.

He also oversaw the acquisition and installation of and a brand-new Instrument Landing System (ILS) for the Kumasi Airport at a cost of €800,000 from internally generated funds.

The acquisition and installation of Doppler Very High Frequency Omni-Range (DVOR) and Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) at a cost of US$1.5million and Installation of Aeronutical Terminal Information System (ATIS) – with the ability to broadcast aeronautical information such as weatherdirectly to pilots without depending on air traffic controllers – was also done during his tenure.

Ghana is one of the few countries in Africa operating the ATIS system.

One critical and very important decision that he took during his tenure was that to suspend all flights to Kumasi as a precautionary measure to protect lives as result of defects found of the Kumasi runway.