The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) yesterday said the implementation of its new Performance Based Navigation (PBN) is underway.

It added that aircraft with necessary approval from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) can now fly into 15 airports in the country without the use of ground navigational aids.

PBN is the technology in air traffic services where aircraft receive advisory information from satellite-based equipment as opposed to ground based equipment.

Its Managing Director, Ibrahim Abdulsalam who spoke with reporters yesterday listed the airports to include Benin, Calabar, Enugu, Ibadan, Ilorin, Owerri, Jos and Kaduna. Others are Maiduguri, Katsina, Minna, Sokoto, Zaria, Gombe.

He said the new technology is contained in a publication of the PBN Area Navigation (RNAV) approaches for 15 Nigerian Airports for airspace managers as well as the publication of Standard Arrival Routes (STARs) and Standard Instrument Departure Routes (SIDRs) for Benin Airport by the agency.

Abdulsalam said the implementation of PBN in Nigeria became inevitable as it is in line with global migration from ground-based navigation to satellite-based navigation.

He said NAMA is leaving no stone unturned in meeting the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) requirement for states to ensure full implementation of PBN at both local and international airports by 2016.

He said: "Because of the increased level of accuracy, reliability, continuity, integrity of information, overall enhanced safety and attendant benefits to airlines and the travelling public, it has become imperative for Nigerian operators to key in to PBN.

"With direct routing and reduced flight times, PBN would enhance efficiency and reduce cost to the airlines."

It will be recalled that NAMA in 2012 published PBN RNAV, SIDs and STARs for the four major airports of Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Kano making them PBN compliant.