The Federal Government has disclosed that it is currently in talks with the Rivers state government to release Caverton Helicopters pilots.
The pilots were arrested by the police for flouting the state’s government directive of flying into the Air Force Base in Port Harcourt despite the lockdown order following the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
Giving update on Monday at the daily briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Aviation, Engineer Hassan Musa said there was a need to fast track their release considering threats by various unions in the aviation sector to embark on strike.
He said: “Federal government is in consultation with the Rivers state government to have them released as soon as possible because their arrest is taking a different dimension as Air Traffic Union and other unions in the aviation sector are threatening to go on strike.
“We hope that this misunderstanding will soon be resolved so that we can have them out as their operation was legal.”