The first batch of dry-leased aircraft to Nigeria, following the country’s removal from the Aviation Working Group watchlist in October 2024, is scheduled to arrive on October 6, 2025.
Aviation and Aerospace Development Minister Festus Keyamo announced this during the foundation-laying ceremony for the Air Peace Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul facility at Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos.
The announcement was confirmed in a statement released by his spokesperson, Tunde Moshood, on Wednesday.
“The Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo SAN, today laid the foundation for the Air Peace Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facility at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos.
“The Minister also disclosed that the first set of dry-lease aircraft under new government-backed arrangements will arrive in Nigeria by October 6, 2025, a step that will further reduce capital flight and strengthen the industry,” the statement read in part.
The aircraft, arriving under a dry-lease arrangement, will give local airlines greater operational control and enhance their competitiveness compared to wet-lease models.
The dry-lease announcement comes alongside the construction of the Air Peace MRO facility, slated for completion within 15 months at a cost of N32 billion.
Spread across a 32,000 sqm site, the facility will include a 6,150 sqm hangar capable of housing wide-body aircraft such as the Boeing 777-ER, 2,800 sqm of storage space, 1,500 sqm of workshops, a four-storey administrative building, and a 5,000 sqm apron.
The facility will cater to both Nigerian and regional airlines, offering domestic maintenance services, with support from partners including the Bank of Industry, Fidelity Bank, Zenith Bank, and technical backing from Embraer.
For years, Nigerian airlines faced challenges in accessing dry-leased aircraft due to the country’s blacklisting by the AWG over non-compliance with the Cape Town Convention.
Previous defaults by Nigerian carriers, some of which led to court injunctions to prevent aircraft repossession, further complicated the situation.
