Air Peace’s chief operating officer, Toyin Olajide, has revealed that the former aviation minister, Hadi Sirika, lied about some of the assertions he made on Air Peace during his Sunday Interview with Arise TV.
While praising Ethiopian Airlines, Sirika claimed that Air Peace had leased “two” Boeing 777 aircraft for a monthly lease fee of $250,000. The planes were parked for several months, causing losses of $19 million, and by the time the airline was ready to take off, all of the engines and landing gear needed to be replaced.
The ex-minister continued by inquiring, “Who does that?” He said Ethiopian Airlines would never act in such a manner.
Olajide responded by saying in a statement that “this is a blatant lie” and that the airline actually has three Boeing 777 aircraft, not two, that were bought outright rather than leased or rented.
“Contrary to his falsehoods, Air Peace never suffered such a loss, and we never paid rentals. The acquisition and ownership of the aircraft by Air Peace are attested to by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority.”
Additionally, Sirika claimed that due to capacity issues, the airline ceased operations in Dubai. This was also referred to by the COO of Air Peace as “another stark lie.”
The COO claimed that despite capacity issues, Air Peace never suspended its operations in Dubai. She claimed that although Air Peace started operating in the UAE in July 2019, the UAE government declared a complete visa restriction on Nigerians in October 2022.
“Since the embargo, neither Emirates nor Air Peace is running the Nigeria/UAE route. The continual non-issuance of visas and the associated problems forced us to halt our operations in Dubai starting on November 22, 2022, and we are still doing so today.
“The former minister’s assertion that the suspension was due to ‘lack of capacity’ is astounding, and it also demonstrates how eager he is to trash an airline that has steadfastly served our country despite all obstacles commercial and otherwise placed in its way.
“How could an airline be accused of having insufficient capacity when it has a definite order for 13 brand-new E2-195 aircraft, a firm order for 15 Boeing 737 Max 8 & Max 10, and more than 30 aircraft currently in its existing fleet?
Olajide asked, “How can an airline that stood up for the entire country during the Covid-19 outbreak, and launched rescue operations worldwide, evacuating Nigerians from distant China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, India, UK, and South Africa during the Covid-19 lockdowns be accused of lacking capacity?”
She pleaded with the public to ignore the criticism of Air Peace made by the previous minister of aviation during the Arise TV interview.
“We strongly object to the way that Airpeace is being depicted in the public sphere, causing wrong perceptions about our brand,” she added.
