Air Peace yesterday disputed claims by the former Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, that the airline lacked the capacity to operate the Dubai route which was approved for it.
Sirika, who spoke during an interview on Arise TV on Sunday, had also claimed that Air Peace leased two aircraft for its international operations which it could not operate for months and it was incurring losses while trying to justify why the Nigeria Air aircraft immediately returned to Ethiopia where it flew from on Friday, May 26, 2023, for the unveiling of the airline.
Responding to the former minister’s claim, the Chief Operating Officer of Air Peace, Mrs Toyin Olajide, disclosed that the airline did not lease two B777 aircraft as claimed by Sirika but bought three of the wide-bodied aircraft.
She also said the stoppage of the Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), flight was due to the visa ban on Nigerians by the UAE Government.
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Nigeria Air: Air Peace faults Sirika’s claim on operations
The statement read: “We watched with dismay the interview granted by former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, to Arise TV on Sunday, June 11, 2023, where he made spurious claims about Air Peace, Nigeria’s foremost airline.
“Air Peace deems it absolutely necessary to debunk these false assertions.
“Firstly, Sirika, in his bid to denigrate Air Peace while praising Ethiopian Airline, stated that we leased ‘two’ Boeing 777 aircraft on a monthly lease fee of $250,000, parked the aircraft for several months and incurred losses of $19 million.
“This is a blatant lie as we have three and not two Boeing 777 aircraft which were never leased or rented, but were purchased out rightly by the airline.
“Air Peace never incurred such a loss; we never paid rentals contrary to his lies. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) can attest to the purchase and ownership of the aircraft by Air Peace.
“Secondly, Sirika said the airline stopped flying to Dubai because ‘we lack capacity’. This is another stark lie.
“Air Peace never stopped the Dubai operations because of lack of capacity. Air Peace commenced operations into the UAE in July 2019, but in October 2022, the UAE Government announced a total visa ban on Nigerians.
“Neither Emirates nor Air Peace is operating the Nigerian/UAE route since the ban. The persisting non-issuance of visas and the accompanying inconveniences necessitated the suspension of our Dubai operations from November 22, 2022, to date.
“For the former minister to ascribe the suspension to ‘lack of capacity’ is not only shocking but also shows how keen he is to disparage an airline whose ascendancy has defied all the commercial odds and hostile environment placed on its path to continue to serve our nation proudly.
“How could an airline that placed a firm order for 13 brand new E2-195 aircraft, a firm order of 15 Boeing 737 Max 8 & Max 10, with over 30 aircraft already in its existing fleet be accused of lacking in capacity?
From Abdullateef Aliyu, Lagos
Air Peace yesterday disputed claims by the former Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, that the airline lacked the capacity to operate the Dubai route which was approved for it.
Sirika, who spoke during an interview on Arise TV on Sunday, had also claimed that Air Peace leased two aircraft for its international operations which it could not operate for months and it was incurring losses while trying to justify why the Nigeria Air aircraft immediately returned to Ethiopia where it flew from on Friday, May 26, 2023, for the unveiling of the airline.
Responding to the former minister’s claim, the Chief Operating Officer of Air Peace, Mrs Toyin Olajide, disclosed that the airline did not lease two B777 aircraft as claimed by Sirika but bought three of the wide-bodied aircraft.
She also said the stoppage of the Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), flight was due to the visa ban on Nigerians by the UAE Government.
The statement read: “We watched with dismay the interview granted by former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, to Arise TV on Sunday, June 11, 2023, where he made spurious claims about Air Peace, Nigeria’s foremost airline.
“Air Peace deems it absolutely necessary to debunk these false assertions.
“Firstly, Sirika, in his bid to denigrate Air Peace while praising Ethiopian Airline, stated that we leased ‘two’ Boeing 777 aircraft on a monthly lease fee of $250,000, parked the aircraft for several months and incurred losses of $19 million.
“This is a blatant lie as we have three and not two Boeing 777 aircraft which were never leased or rented, but were purchased out rightly by the airline.
“Air Peace never incurred such a loss; we never paid rentals contrary to his lies. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) can attest to the purchase and ownership of the aircraft by Air Peace.
“Secondly, Sirika said the airline stopped flying to Dubai because ‘we lack capacity’. This is another stark lie.
“Air Peace never stopped the Dubai operations because of lack of capacity. Air Peace commenced operations into the UAE in July 2019, but in October 2022, the UAE Government announced a total visa ban on Nigerians.
“Neither Emirates nor Air Peace is operating the Nigerian/UAE route since the ban. The persisting non-issuance of visas and the accompanying inconveniences necessitated the suspension of our Dubai operations from November 22, 2022, to date.
“For the former minister to ascribe the suspension to ‘lack of capacity’ is not only shocking but also shows how keen he is to disparage an airline whose ascendancy has defied all the commercial odds and hostile environment placed on its path to continue to serve our nation proudly.
“How could an airline that placed a firm order for 13 brand new E2-195 aircraft, a firm order of 15 Boeing 737 Max 8 & Max 10, with over 30 aircraft already in its existing fleet be accused of lacking in capacity?
vFrom Abdullateef Aliyu, Lagos
Air Peace yesterday disputed claims by the former Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, that the airline lacked the capacity to operate the Dubai route which was approved for it.
Sirika, who spoke during an interview on Arise TV on Sunday, had also claimed that Air Peace leased two aircraft for its international operations which it could not operate for months and it was incurring losses while trying to justify why the Nigeria Air aircraft immediately returned to Ethiopia where it flew from on Friday, May 26, 2023, for the unveiling of the airline.
Responding to the former minister’s claim, the Chief Operating Officer of Air Peace, Mrs Toyin Olajide, disclosed that the airline did not lease two B777 aircraft as claimed by Sirika but bought three of the wide-bodied aircraft.
She also said the stoppage of the Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), flight was due to the visa ban on Nigerians by the UAE Government.
The statement read: “We watched with dismay the interview granted by former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, to Arise TV on Sunday, June 11, 2023, where he made spurious claims about Air Peace, Nigeria’s foremost airline.
“Air Peace deems it absolutely necessary to debunk these false assertions.
“Firstly, Sirika, in his bid to denigrate Air Peace while praising Ethiopian Airline, stated that we leased ‘two’ Boeing 777 aircraft on a monthly lease fee of $250,000, parked the aircraft for several months and incurred losses of $19 million.
“This is a blatant lie as we have three and not two Boeing 777 aircraft which were never leased or rented, but were purchased out rightly by the airline.
“Air Peace never incurred such a loss; we never paid rentals contrary to his lies. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) can attest to the purchase and ownership of the aircraft by Air Peace.
“Secondly, Sirika said the airline stopped flying to Dubai because ‘we lack capacity’. This is another stark lie.
“Air Peace never stopped the Dubai operations because of lack of capacity. Air Peace commenced operations into the UAE in July 2019, but in October 2022, the UAE Government announced a total visa ban on Nigerians.
“Neither Emirates nor Air Peace is operating the Nigerian/UAE route since the ban. The persisting non-issuance of visas and the accompanying inconveniences necessitated the suspension of our Dubai operations from November 22, 2022, to date.
“For the former minister to ascribe the suspension to ‘lack of capacity’ is not only shocking but also shows how keen he is to disparage an airline whose ascendancy has defied all the commercial odds and hostile environment placed on its path to continue to serve our nation proudly.
“How could an airline that placed a firm order for 13 brand new E2-195 aircraft, a firm order of 15 Boeing 737 Max 8 & Max 10, with over 30 aircraft already in its existing fleet be accused of lacking in capacity?
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