The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) firmly rejected claims that 13 of their members were blacklisted by lessors for not honoring contracts.
In a statement made by their spokesperson, Prof. Obiora Okonkwo, AON dismissed the report published by Business Day as “completely false, malicious, and defamatory.” AON stated that its members strive to meet their contractual obligations despite the difficult business environment. The operators accused the publication of trying to undermine public trust and the aviation sector, demanding an immediate retraction and an apology as prominent as the original reports.
The AON’s statement read: “We have noted a report on Business Day’s front page from Wednesday, July 17, 2024, titled ’13 Nigerian Airlines Blacklisted for Contract Breaches,’ followed by another story on their website the same day, titled ‘Air Peace, Ibom Air, United Nigeria, Max Air, others say not blacklisted by lessors.'”
“The first report alleged that 13 airlines, including Aero Contractors, Air Peace, Arik, Azman, Dana, Green Africa, Ibom Air, Max Air, United Nigeria Airline, and Valuejet, were blacklisted for not paying lessor fees. The second report stated that these airlines denied owing lessors, despite the newspaper not officially consulting the management of the airlines it named in its earlier report. To clarify, we firmly assert that the first report is entirely false, malicious, and defamatory.”
“The second report is even more troubling, as the newspaper, rather than retracting its false claims, began fabricating information to justify the fake news. We want to emphasize that Nigerian airlines have diligently worked to meet their contractual obligations with lessors, despite operating in a challenging business climate.
It is also widely known that the Minister for Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has recognized the difficulties domestic operators face since taking office and has taken steps to create a supportive environment for us. For public awareness, two of the mentioned airlines – Air Peace and Azman – have themselves been victims of fraud by lessors, resulting in losses exceeding $3 million.”
“Despite these obstacles, domestic airlines remain dedicated to serving the Nigerian public and contributing to national economic growth. We find the publication of such falsehoods very distressing and see it as a deliberate attempt to undermine confidence and harm the aviation industry. We demand an immediate retraction and apology from Business Day, with the same level of prominence as the false cover stories. If there is no satisfactory response, we may file a complaint with relevant media oversight bodies, take legal action, or both, to protect our reputation.”
