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Audit flags defects at Entebbe airport
An aerial view of Entebbe International Airport. The investigators found extensive rubber build-up on the runway’s landing and take-off areas. Photo / File
What you need to know:
- According to the report, this gap has gone unattended for long yet it has the potential to inflict serious consequences. The authors have advised UCAA to replace the baggage handling system if repairs are unsuccessful.
A classified security inspection report of Entebbe International Airport (EIA) has outlined security concerns and gaps which investigators say need immediate action by the aviation regulator.
The report was the result of a routine security inspection to identify potential security breaches at the country’s only international airport. It was submitted to the Chief of the Joint Security Operations and the commandant of the Aviation Police, and was discussed by senior airport officials on Monday.
A copy of the report seen by this newspaper “established no real security threats” but highlights areas that need to be urgently addressed by Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA).
One of the key issues raised is the malfunctioned baggage handling system, which “has for a long period of time offered a wide security gap as EIA’s capacity to carry out a secondary and final technical security screening of all checked in baggage has been compromised for so long.”
According to the report, this gap has gone unattended for long yet it has the potential to inflict serious consequences. The authors have advised UCAA to replace the baggage handling system if repairs are unsuccessful.
The investigators also found extensive rubber build-up on the runway’s landing and take-off areas which, they warned, could result in reduced braking and directional control in wet conditions. Investigators said there is an “urgent need” to remove the extensive rubber deposit accumulation and timely routine maintenance.
On April 20, a Rwanda Air aircraft veered off the runway, causing hours-long flight delays at Entebbe Airport. The event was attributed to unfavourable weather by officials, but this newspaper exclusively spotlighted potential problems on the runway at the time.
Months later, this newspaper reported that President Museveni, in a letter on the incident, had noted structural and technical problems at UCAA. “Whether the pilot made a mistake or not, I am more interested in the mistakes of [U]CAA and the airport management,” he noted in his letter copied to Vice President Jessica Alupo, Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka, Defence minister Vincent Ssempijja and Chief of Defence Forces Wilson Mbadi, among others. The incident led to the suspension of outbound and inbound flights by UCAA for at least 20 hours. The UPDF was called in to remove the stricken plane because there was insufficient equipment.
The incident brought into sharp focus the work that been undertaken on the runway in 2020, part of a $200 million upgrade of the airport by China Communication Construction Company (CCCC).
Although the alternate runway 12/30 hasn’t been certified, the security study finds that the original air approach to this runway hasn’t been maintained and is now engulfed in dense swamp vegetation.
To have runway 12/30 certified for full operations as a backup runway for both day and night flights, it should be budgeted for and implemented to replace the defunct runway 12/30 Air Approach and runways 12/30 edge lighting, the investigators recommend.
The inspectors observe that there is only a limited capacity for marine rescue—the available capacity shows less than 100 people every trip, which is far less than more than 400 passengers if all rescue boats are in working order.
Repairs and replacements
To fully restore the advised maritime rescue and firefighting capacity, UCAA should expedite the current procurement procedures for all required repairs and part replacements, the investigators noted.
Also cited are inadequate security safeguards at the entrance gates, lack of essential security equipment, such as search mirrors, scanners, and handheld metal detectors, together with insufficient Aviation Security (AVSEC) personnel.
EIA, according to the inspection team, lacks a designated aircraft isolation parking area at the airside. Further, the automatic weather instrument and weather thermometer at Buku Weather Observatory Station is spoilt. They observe a generally bushy airport environment at the Eastern and Northern sections. This, they add, attracts birds as well as domestic and wild animals which pose hazards to flight operations.
The report also notes the absence of perimeter lighting and closed-circuit television making night security observation impossible without night vision gadgets.
Other issues include noticeable subterranean grumbling among firefighting and rescue staff over poor relations with their leadership. Then there is absence of runway edge lights on Runway 12/30. Many of the night portable lights being used are also old. A lift in the VIP arrival area was also found to be faulty, among other defects.
While none of these shortcomings are considered major, UCAA faces a race to rectify them ahead of a scheduled inspection by the International Civil Aviation Authority.
Entebbe Airport has a relatively good safety record but the recent incident involving a Precision Airlines aircraft that overshot the runway in Bukoba and ended up in Lake Victoria killing more than a dozen passengers has put the spotlight on air safety.
This newspaper held this story to allow UCAA officials to discuss the report on Monday. The Authority’s spokesperson Vianney Luggya sent this response after the meetings:
“It is important to note that security and safety reports of this nature are normal in the aviation industry, and are usually prepared internally for continuous improvement. When the reports are made, they are discussed, clarifications made, and the actual status of ongoing improvements given.”
On the baggage handling system: “The baggage conveyor component of the system is fully operational. However, the system’s automatic mode, which relates to secondary screening of baggage is temporarily experiencing challenges. There are backup measures, including thorough screening at the primary level (first security screening on entry to departure) and rescreening of baggage using sniffer dogs in the baggage make-up area. Even when the BHS is fully operational in automatic mode, sniffer dogs are still deployed and they provide the highest percentage of reliability.”
On rubber on the runway: “This is normal at all airports in the world because every time an aircraft lands, it leaves rubber deposits on the runway, especially on the runway touch-down zone. The more landings on a runway, the more rubber deposits.”
He said when friction test readings reach a certain level, it calls for work to remove the rubber deposits. “We have not yet got to that state so there is no cause for alarm.”
On marine capacity: “The capacity of the Marine section is much higher than what is stated. For instance, Rescue 2, which is only one of the marine boats in place, has six life rafts with each raft having the capacity to rescue 37 people, a total of 222 people. In addition, each life raft is designed with a survival rope all around it on which about 20 people can hold during a rescue mission. The survival rope provides for an additional total of 120. The minor issues that the boat experienced are already being addressed.”
