FG moves to sell Obasanjo-era presidential jet after two decades

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The Federal Government has listed its 19-year-old Boeing 737-700 Business Jet for sale, citing rising attraction costs and information concerns
The aircraft, primitively bought for $43 cardinal successful 2005, was replaced by a refurbished Airbus A330-200 present undergoing customization abroad
The BBJ, antecedently utilized for statesmanlike travel, is presently being inspected successful Switzerland and offered for backstage acquisition via AMAC Aerospace

The Nigerian authorities has officially listed 1 of its statesmanlike aircraft, a Boeing 737‑700 Business Jet, for merchantability astir 2 decades aft it was acquired nether erstwhile President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The listing, hosted by AMAC Aerospace successful Basel, Switzerland, marks a important determination to trim the costly and aging Presidential Air Fleet.

FG readies to merchantability iconic jet

Originally purchased successful 2005 for $43 million, the BBJ, bearing the process fig 5N-FGT, has been a cardinal fig successful Nigeria’s VIP aerial travel. It served aggregate administrations earlier being sidelined successful August 2024, erstwhile President Bola Tinubu adopted a refurbished Airbus A330-200. That newer aircraft, bought for astir $100 million, is presently undergoing customisation and repainting to bespeak nationalist colours.

According to craft income level Controller.com, the Boeing pitchy is being sold without a listed price, but funny buyers can interaction AMAC directly.

The craft has completed indispensable maintenance, including C1-C2 inspections, and is undergoing further checks successful Switzerland to hole it for handover.

Safety reasons necessitate sale

Despite a partial interior refurbishment successful mid-2024, which included upgraded seating and caller carpeting, the pitchy had go costly to maintain.

Officials accidental the determination to offload the level was driven by information concerns and operational inefficiencies, peculiarly aft a mechanical contented disrupted a statesmanlike travel to Saudi Arabia past year.

The BBJ is configured to transportation 33 passengers and 8 unit crossed 5 chiseled compartment zones. These see a unit remainder area, VIP stateroom with a backstage lavatory, a league lounge, first-class seats, and a business-class section. It besides features afloat equipped galleys, 4 enclosed lavatories, and in-flight entertainment powered by Honeywell’s Ka-Band Wi-Fi system.

The craft is powered by 2 CFM56-7BE engines, neither of which is enrolled successful a attraction programme. While they stay “on condition,” meaning inactive functional, their deficiency of work sum could interaction the aircraft’s marketplace appeal.

With an intercontinental scope supported by 8 auxiliary substance tanks, the pitchy remains flight-ready but volition nary longer service successful the country’s authoritative fleet. Its status comes arsenic some the Buhari and Tinubu administrations question to chopped down the size and outgo of statesmanlike assets.

How Tinubu spent N20.03bn connected statesmanlike jet

Earlier successful a akin report, Legit.ng discovered that President Bola Tinubu had spent astatine slightest N20.03bn on the operations and attraction of the statesmanlike fleet betwixt July 2023 and December 2024, an approximate of 18 months.

In a study by a civic tech bureau that tracks and analyses the spending of the national government, GovSpend, it was uncovered that 71 per cent of the payout for the fleet successful the 2024 fiscal twelvemonth was consumed by the recently acquired statesmanlike jet, which amounted to N14.15bn.

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Source: Legit.ng

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