Nigeria’s largest airline, Air Peace, yesterday, accused Latvia-based company, SmartLynx Airlines, of withdrawing three of its wet-leased aircraft without notice, saying the situation has caused them over $15 million in damages.
Wet-lease is an aircraft leasing agreement where the lessor provides the aircraft, a crew, maintenance and insurance, while the lessee operates the aircraft under the lessor’s operational control and air operator’s certificate, AOC.
Air Peace lamented that the withdrawal was a violation of industry standards and agreement between both parties, saying the aircraft had been scheduled for operations and their removal resulted in delays and cancellations.
Addressing newsmen at its headquarters in Lagos, the carrier’s Chief Commercial Officer, Mr Nowel Ngala, however, promised to reprotect passengers that might be affected by the disruptions, noting that its London operations remained unaffected.
Ngala stated that Air Peace and SmartLynx had been in business for four years before this development, adding that despite the setbacks, some of its aircraft had completed maintenance and were returning to service.
His words: “Over the past week, Air Peace has experienced several operational disruptions, resulting in flight delays and cancellations. We understand the inconvenience this has caused our valued customers, and we want to address these issues with full transparency.
“Air Peace entered a wet-lease agreement with Smartlynx because 13 of our aircraft are currently undergoing scheduled maintenance abroad. To avoid service gaps and ensure Nigerians could continue to travel conveniently, we leased aircraft from SmartLynx. These efforts were made solely to support our passengers during peak travel periods.
“The disruptions were caused by the abrupt and unjustified withdrawal of four aircraft we wet-leased from SmartLynx Airlines. This withdrawal was done without prior notice, a clear violation of industry standards, and of the agreement between both parties.
“What makes this even more concerning is that SmartLynx had collected money upfront from Air Peace, fully aware that the rightful owners of those aircraft would be withdrawing their aircraft from them because they have been in default of payments to the said owners.
Over $5million of our money including over a million dollars paid as security deposits for those aircraft are with them while they are about to run away from Nigeria and this situation has caused over $15 million in damages to Air Peace.
“These aircraft had already been rostered for scheduled flights, and their sudden removal created significant gaps in our operations. It is important to note that other airlines who leased aircraft from SmartLynx from other parts of the world were similarly affected, confirming a broad pattern of unprofessional conduct.
“We consider this action by smartlynx to be a serious breach of contract, fraudulent, and a premeditated scheme that has inflicted financial loss and reputational damage not just to Air peace but indirectly to the Nigerian travelling public, whom we serve with pride.
“Despite SmartLynx’s actions, Air Peace has released three of the aircraft in question to their rightful owners in good faith. One more aircraft remains, and all we are requesting for is a refund of our funds.
“This is not the first time Air Peace has been placed in a difficult situation by a fraudulent lessor. SYPHAX Airlines of Tunisia vanished with over 2 million USD from Air Peace and never returned-claiming they were taking their aircraft for maintenance. The aircraft was never returned, and the funds remain unaccounted for to date as the airline went into bankruptcy.”
“These actions, unfortunately, reflect the challenges Nigerian carriers often face in international leasing arrangements, we cannot allow that to happen again. Despite these setbacks, we are pleased to announce that some of our aircraft have completed maintenance and are returning to service.
“Two aircraft have already arrived. Starting next week, we expect to resume full operations across all our routes as more of our aircraft return.
“We regret the difficulties our passengers have experienced, and we appreciate their patience and understanding throughout this period. Air Peace remains firmly committed to providing safe, reliable and world-class flight services. We assure the Nigerian public that we are taking every necessary step to prevent such disruptions in the future and to hold all defaulting partners accountable.”
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