Auditor says air traffic control needs to do better

The Department of Civil Aviation’s Safety Regulation Unit was recently under the Auditor’s microscope, and findings show it is not properly organised and lacks efficiency due to a lack of best practices.

Despite a 76% on actual flight delays in FIR Nicosia, an audit report published Thursday showed that flight delays within Cypriot airspace fell short of the targets set by the European Union.

Several reasons were cited for a general ineffectiveness in the department, ranging from restructuring plans still pending to inspector units inadequately staffed.

The report says that specially trained inspectors were low in numbers, resulting to their units not being able to carry out the work load according to rules and regulations.

One of the problems is that Civil Aviation is owed millions of euros but fails to collect the money because inspections are not as regular as they should have been and adequate legal action to collect money needs to be reinforced. In a given year, money owed could reach close to €20 million.

The building of the department’s headquarters also is described in the report as having a very high monthly rent, even though it did not meet basic parking criteria. One of the bidding terms included a minimum of 84 parking spots, but the successful bidder only provided 54 at a higher price.

There are also many approved positions within the department that have been vacant for many years, while promotions are also on hold.

Overtime paid from €2,138 to €54,120

Air traffic controllers received a total of €2.84 million in overtime wages and bonuses in 2016, compared to €2.79 million in 2015, while a plan for increased productivity was in effect aimed at cutting down flight delay times in FIR Nicosia.

According to the audit report, overtime and bonuses amounted to €1,523,233 for air traffic controllers, with amounts ranging between €2,138 to €54,120.

Actual overtime hours in 2016 came to 65,504 compared to 60,050, which translates to 5,454 extra hours or an 8.3% increase.

Officials within the department say flaws in the Civil Service structure are to blame for the lack of organization in the Safety Regulation Unit and air traffic control. Delays are also due to air space limitations due to war activity and military exercises, according to the department.

But the auditor also wrote that the position held by the department overlooks serious problems and questionable employment terms for staff, which are left to be resolved by passing the buck to the creation of a state air services provider in the future.