The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has commenced moves to deploy Radio Frequency Identification technology at Nigerian airports to tackle persistent cases of lost, delayed, damaged and misrouted passengers’ baggage.

The technology, which is expected to track passengers’ luggage from check-in to aircraft loading and arrival, was unveiled at a technology modernisation briefing organised by the NCAA for airlines, ground handlers and other aviation stakeholders on Tuesday.

Speaking at the event, NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, said baggage handling remained one of the industry’s biggest sources of passenger complaints, after flight delays.

Achimugu said, “For many years now, one of the biggest complaints in the industry has been that of baggage. Passengers frequently contend with bags that are short-landed, missing, lost or damaged.”

He said the proposed RFID system would allow passengers to monitor their bags through an application and know whether the luggage had left the check-in area, reached the sorting point, arrived at the boarding area or been loaded onto the correct aircraft.

According to him, the technology would also help prevent bags from being sent to the wrong destinations by flagging discrepancies during processing.

Achimugu gave the example of a passenger travelling from Lagos to Kano, saying the system would make it difficult for such a bag to be loaded onto another flight without being detected.

He said RFID would equally improve the way airlines respond to missing-baggage complaints by providing a record of the bag’s last known location.

“If you have landed in Lagos, but your bag is in Enugu, for instance, you can tell the airline specifically where your bag is,” he said.

Achimugu said such visibility would reduce the time airlines spend investigating baggage complaints and make operators more accountable for lapses along the baggage-handling chain.

However, the technology is not yet operational, as the NCAA continues consultations with airlines and other stakeholders on implementation.

He further said discussions were ongoing on how the RFID platform would integrate with airlines’ existing Passenger Service Systems and Departure Control Systems, while the authority was also considering regulatory changes that could make baggage automation mandatory.

Airlines support the initiative, but raised concerns about integration, infrastructure, human error and the cost of implementation.

Operators questioned whether existing baggage-tagging equipment and printers would have to be replaced and sought clarity on who would bear the cost of the new technology.

They also warned that the success of RFID would depend on adequate baggage-sorting infrastructure at airports.

The contractor, Aviation 360 Solutions, said the system would deploy multiple scanning points at baggage sorting and aircraft-loading areas to create a digital record of each bag’s movement.

The company said the system would make it possible to determine where a bag was last scanned if it failed to reach the aircraft.

Achimugu said successful implementation would require the cooperation of the NCAA, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, airlines, ground handlers and other service providers.

“The NCAA does not own airport infrastructure,” he said, stressing that all stakeholders must be involved because of their respective roles in baggage handling.

The NCAA said the project is expected to commence later this year, with the ultimate objective of reducing one of the aviation industry’s most persistent passenger complaints.

African airlines and their industry representatives have pushed back against attempts to make airlines and passengers pay for government-run Advance Passenger Information and Passenger Name Record systems, insisting that border security is the responsibility of states.

The African Airlines Association, Airlines Association of Southern Africa and International Air Transport Association said they support the deployment of API and PNR systems across the continent, but warned that the cost should not be passed on to travellers or carriers through additional charges.

In a joint statement signed by AFRAA Secretary-General, Abdérahmane Berthé; AASA Chief Executive Officer, Aaron Munetsi; and IATA Regional Vice President, Africa and Middle East, Kamil Alawadhi, the associations said governments should fund the systems as part of their border-security responsibilities.

API and PNR systems allow governments to receive passenger information before travellers arrive at or depart from a country. The data can help authorities strengthen border controls, support law-enforcement operations and identify security risks, while also making the movement of legitimate travellers more efficient.

But the three aviation bodies warned that the benefits could be undermined if African countries introduce poorly coordinated systems or impose new financial burdens on an industry already grappling with high operating costs.

They particularly rejected the use of airline and passenger charges to fund national API and PNR programmes.

The associations argued that the International Civil Aviation Organization Policies on Charges for Airports and Air Navigation Services, contained in Doc 9082, recognise border security as a government responsibility. Consequently, they said, the costs associated with border-security measures, including API and PNR programmes, should be borne by governments.

Passing the bill to airlines and passengers, they warned, would ultimately make air travel more expensive, weaken connectivity and threaten some of the wider economic benefits aviation brings through tourism, trade and investment.

For an industry seeking to make air travel across Africa more accessible, the associations said additional charges could have consequences far beyond the price of a ticket.

They therefore called on governments implementing API and PNR systems to put clear legal and operational frameworks in place before deployment, while ensuring that national programmes conform to ICAO standards and other internationally recognised practices.

Four principles, they said, should underpin the systems: legality, proportionality, purpose limitation, and consistency and accuracy.

On legality, the groups said governments must establish clear laws governing the collection, processing and transfer of passenger data, consistent with international API and PNR standards as well as applicable bilateral and regional agreements.

They also harped on proportionality, saying authorities should collect only information genuinely required for the stated purpose.

Passenger data, they said, should not be kept indefinitely. It should be retained for a clearly defined period, while risk-assessment processes must contain safeguards to prevent discrimination.

The associations also maintained that information collected under API and PNR programmes must be used only for legitimate purposes such as border control, national security, law enforcement and the prevention of serious crimes.

They also urged governments to prioritise accuracy and consistency in the way passenger information is collected, processed, stored and transmitted, with countries adopting harmonised global data formats and strong safeguards for personal information.

In their joint statement, the aviation bodies said they were not opposed to passenger-data systems, but to approaches that create unnecessary costs, inconsistent requirements and avoidable burdens for travellers and airlines.

The organisations said, “We support the implementation of Advance Passenger Information and Passenger Name Record data transfer and recognise the important role passenger data plays in keeping borders secure.

“However, these systems must be aligned around internationally recognised standards and funded correctly.”

They said a coordinated approach between governments and the aviation industry would deliver better security without making travel unnecessarily complicated or expensive.

“A consistent approach, with governments and industry working together, improves security outcomes, makes travel more seamless, safeguards personal data, and avoids unnecessary costs and complexity,” they added.

Former General Secretary of the Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative, John Ojikutu, has urged the House of Representatives to compel the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria to contribute five per cent of its airport commercial earnings to the pool funding aviation safety agencies.

Ojikutu made the proposal in a presentation  to the House Committee on Aviation and obtained by The PUNCH, in which he called for a comprehensive review of the sharing formula for the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge, Cargo Sales Charge and Chartered Flights Charge.

He argued that the existing arrangement among the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau and Nigerian Meteorological Agency was neither rational nor reflective of the different responsibilities and operational demands of the agencies.

According to him, the formula should take into account the number of personnel deployed by each agency, the volume of operational equipment, geographical spread, hours of operation and, most importantly, the safety responsibilities assigned to each institution.

Ojikutu said the five per cent charges were created to sustain mandatory aviation safety services, but questioned whether the current distribution adequately reflected the realities on the ground.

He maintained that agencies carrying heavy operational and safety responsibilities should not be left struggling for funds while critical infrastructure, equipment and personnel require continuous investment.

At the centre of his proposal is FAAN, which he said should no longer be treated merely as an airport infrastructure manager when considering contributions to aviation safety funding.

Ojikutu noted that FAAN operates several commercial and non-aeronautical services from which it generates substantial revenue, including passenger terminal services, aircraft landing and parking charges, cargo operations, car parks, toll gates, fuel sales, car-hire services, land and office rentals, shopping malls and restaurants.

He said the list also covers airline check-in counters, aerobridges, VIP lounges and other commercial operations conducted within airport facilities.

Ojikutu argued that since these services generate revenue in the aviation ecosystem, FAAN should contribute to the funding of the safety system that supports the airports and the wider industry.

He said, “The non-aeronautical services that are mostly commercial operators’ services, which mainly are the airlines operators, cargo operators, etc., must necessarily include FAAN.

“FAAN, being a commercial airport services operator, should contribute five per cent of its airport sales service charges into the general pool for aviation safety services.”

Ojikutu also proposed a major redistribution of the existing five per cent fund, with NAMA emerging as the biggest beneficiary.

He recommended that NAMA’s allocation should increase from the current 22 per cent to 40 per cent, citing the agency’s extensive safety responsibilities and the cost of maintaining the infrastructure required to keep Nigeria’s airspace safe.

NAMA provides air traffic control and navigational services to commercial, private, government, diplomatic and military aircraft operating within the country’s airspace.

Ojikutu estimated that the agency’s workforce includes more than 800 air traffic controllers, over 500 engineers and technologists, and more than 1,000 administrative and support personnel.

He warned that inadequate funding could put critical aviation safety infrastructure at risk, particularly where maintenance, replacement and calibration of equipment are delayed.

For the NCAA, Ojikutu recommended that its share should not exceed 40 per cent, compared with its current 56 per cent allocation.

He argued that the regulator already has more than 15 other revenue sources apart from the five per cent aviation charges, making it necessary to reconsider the size of its allocation from the common safety fund.

The proposed review, he said, should ultimately ensure that scarce aviation safety funds follow responsibility, operational exposure and actual funding needs rather than simply preserving an outdated sharing formula.

For Ojikutu, the issue is not merely about how aviation revenue is divided, but about ensuring that the agencies responsible for keeping passengers, aircraft and Nigeria’s airspace safe have the resources to do their jobs effectively.