President Tinubu Flies to South Africa on Chartered Aircraft.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu flew to Pretoria for the inauguration of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on a chartered aircraft due to the poor condition of the presidential jet. It was revealed that the Nigerian Air Force 001, a 737 Boeing Business Jet (BBJ), is undergoing C-Check maintenance and was unavailable for the trip.
President Tinubu departed from Lagos on Monday aboard the chartered plane, as other planes in the Presidential Air Fleet (PAF) were also not in a suitable state for the journey. A source in the government confirmed, “The President took a chartered plane to South Africa because most of the aircraft in PAF are currently undergoing routine maintenance due to their poor condition. The BBJ used by Mr. President is over 20 years old.”
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Earlier this year, Vice President Kashim Shettima had to cancel a trip to the United States at the last minute because his official jet developed a fault. The source emphasised that safety is the top priority, stating, “President Tinubu does not derive pleasure in flying about in a chartered jet. What will he gain? But when it comes to the technical audit of the PAF aircraft, safety is a top priority. It is better to mitigate any risk than to aggravate it.”
The Presidential Fleet consists of ten aircraft, including six jets and four helicopters. However, none of these aircraft were in good enough condition to fly to South Africa. The fleet includes Boeing Business Jets (BBJ) 737, Gulfstream G550, Gulfstream G500, two Falcons 7X, HS 4000, two Agusta 139, and two Agusta 101.
In the past year, President Tinubu has been considering reducing the aircraft in the presidential fleet from ten to seven as part of cost-saving measures. The aircraft likely to be removed from the fleet include the 737 Boeing Business Jet (BBJ), Falcon, and Embraer jets. The BBJ was purchased for about $43 million during Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s presidency.
The Federal Government has been advised to replace the Nigerian Air Force 001. Since 2016, the presidency has spent over N80 billion on the Presidential Fleet, managed by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). The annual budgets for the fleet have steadily increased, with significant allocations in recent years.
President Tinubu is reportedly uncomfortable with the rising maintenance costs and has asked for the fleet to be reduced from ten to seven in the first phase. While there are indications that a new aircraft may be acquired, a reduction in the fleet size is likely.
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In October 2016, former President Muhammadu Buhari proposed selling two aircraft—Dassault Falcon 7x executive jet and a Beechcraft Hawker 4000 business jet. Although preferred bidders initially agreed to pay $24 million for the two aircraft, they later reduced their offer to $11 million, which the Buhari administration rejected.
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