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Buhari’s government has reportedly used N139.3bn ($300m) to repaint an 11-year-old Ethiopian Airlines aircraft and presented it as Nigeria Air, the country’s national carrier.
Recall that Hadi Sirika, Minister of Aviation minister of aviation on Friday, May 26, 2023, tweeted celebrating the landing of Nigeria Air.
“We are here. To Almighty God be all the glory. It has been a very long, tedious, daunting and difficult path. We thank everyone for the support. This, by the will of God, will be for us and generations to come. Ya Allah make it beneficial for our country and humanity,” he tweeted.
The Boeing 737-800 series aircraft aircraft took off from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, at 9:55am on Friday and landed at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, at 12:43 p.m.
He later unveiled the aircraft with registration ET-APL at the General Aviation Terminal of the Abuja airport.
The Nigeria Air is the nation’s proposed national carrier which was unveiled at the Farnborough Air Show in England on July 18, 2018.
The project was suspended two months after it was announced after critics raised concerns over its relevance and sustainability. The airline was expected to gulp $8.8 million as preliminary cost and $300 million (N139.3bn) as what appears to be a glorious ending to a 5-year wait for Nigerians to celebrate their own national carrier has been marred by controversies.
Reports revealed that the plane unveiled as Nigerian Air is over 11 years old and belongs to Ethiopian Airlines.
The information which was obtained from Plane Spotters, a platform which takes an inventory of aircraft said; “The Registration Number is ET-APL and the Mode is S Q4005C. The Serial Number: 40965/4075. The first flight was an Ethiopian Airlines aircraft. Then it became Malawi Airlines on 16th February 2014. It was then acquired again by Ethiopian Airlines in 2015 and has been operating under Ethiopian Air since then.
“Then on the 26th of May 2023, it has Nigeria Air colours without changing ownership. It was first spotted in South Africa before it flew to Nigeria today.”
A BusinessDay report also revealed that the Boeing 737-860 Max aircraft used for the launch of Nigeria Air actually belongs to Ethiopian Airlines.
The report also disclosed that Sirika, a few days ago, reached out to Ethiopian Airlines to secure an aircraft that could be presented as belonging to Nigeria Air. Ethiopian Airlines agreed by repainting and rebranding one of its aircraft.
DailyTrust also corroborated the findings, revealing that the Boeing 737-860 Max with registration number ET-APL, Mode S Q4005C, and serial number 40965/4075 had its first flight on June 22, 2012(11 years ago), as an Ethiopian Airlines aircraft.
Meanwhile, Bashir Ahmed, the Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Digital Communications, responded to the reports.
He defended the repainting, emphasising that it was never intended to be kept a secret.
His words: “It is never a secret that Ethiopian Airlines is one of the major shareholders/partners in the Nigeria Air Limited projects. Never! Save the cry now, and expect to see more Ethiopian Airlines aircraft branded in our national carrier’s colors.
“Like NigeriaAir, many major airlines around the world are not owned by their governments, British Airways, which IAG owns, is an example.”/SHARE THIS
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