Nigerians now parade 250 private jets

-How they splashed N1.8 trillion on luxury aircraft

Nigeria has now taken the front seat in private jet ownership which is now a trend and competition among the rich in the country.

More exciting revelations have emerged that the penchant for private jet acquisition has cost wealthy Nigerians over N1.8 trillion aside the several billions for maintaining them annually. Investigation by ENCOMIUM Weekly revealed that about 250 private jets are currently being owned by Nigerians.

The luxury trend actually rose by 700 percent between 2007 and 2014, and this has increased the rate of private jet acquisition from 20 in 2007 to over 250 in 2014 which has placed Nigeria and China as the fastest growing private jet markets in the world.

Aircraft manufacturers like Bombardier, Gulf Stream, Embraer, Hawker Siddley and Challenger have made Nigeria their huge market because of the demand for these aircraft types by wealthy Nigerians.

The common brands of private jets in Nigeria are Hawker Siddley 125-800 and 900XP, Gulfstream 450, 550 and 650; Bombardier Challenger 604, 605; Global Express; Embraer Legacy and Falcons.

The state-of-the-art private jets being flown by business moguls, pastors, politicians and public office holders in the country are made by one of these manufacturers.

Checks by ENCOMIUM Weekly revealed that Bombardier jets lead the pack with over 108 varieties, Gulfstreams followed with an average of 70 jets, Hawker with 40, while Falcon is becoming a common trend with about 30 pieces and the most expensive being Gulfstream G650 has just two of its type in Nigeria.

The Regional Vice-President, Sales, Middle East, Africa and Turkey, Bombardier Business Aircraft, the Canada-based aircraft manufacturing firm, Mr. Khadar Mattar, was reported to have admitted  the private jet market in Nigeria as currently booming.

Mattar, who said his company delivered 88 out of the 138 aircraft flying in Nigeria in 2012, noted that Bombardier was currently the market leader in terms of the number of aircraft in Africa.

He said, “In Nigeria, we are looking at another 60 to 70 new business aircraft within the next five years; that is about 10 airplanes a year. There are 138 airplanes in Nigeria at the moment.

“Bombardier is currently leading the market in Nigeria and Africa. 12 new ones should be delivered this year.”

And we reliably gathered that they lived up to their expectations.  According to our investigation, an average Bombardier jet goes for N8 billion. Thus, 108 pieces will total N800 billion. Gulfstream is N7.2 billion now and 70 of that is N507.5 billion. Hawker jets is N4.8billion and 40 of that would be N192 billion.

Falcon X7 being expensive is N8.2 billion and 30 of that goes for N247.5 billion. The most expensive of them is Gulfstream G650 which is valued at N11.5 billion and two of that is N23 billion. Thus the total is N1.8 trillion.

According to our source, most of the jets arrived at Evergreen Apple Hangar, Executive Hanger and other private hangars at the airport. The four major airports where there is a boom in private jet flights are Abuja, Kano, Kaduna and majorly Lagos.

It was revealed that the flights are predominantly plying Europe, Ireland, Germany, Spain, France, Austria and America.

In Africa, the movements are actually to Ghana, the Gambia, Equatorial Guinea, Uganda and South Africa. We have it on good authority that over 70 percent of these jets bear foreign registration numbers and are being used for commercial purposes indirectly.

Industry sources squealed that the alarming rate at which business executives fly private jets within and outside the country revealed the indirect commercial usage of private jets by wealthy Nigerians and a lot of them have more than one. They allegedly declared one officially which they registered in Nigeria and another one they acquired but registered with foreign names. They use these ones to fly individuals and corporate executives. It was learnt that this trend informed the unpopular federal government aviation policy in 2013, which stipulated that for a private aircraft owned or leased by individuals, only the family members of the owner will be permitted to board as passengers.

THE TOP 5 BRANDS OF PRIVATE JETS AND THEIR WORTH

The top five brands of private jets acquired by wealthy Nigerians alongside corporate organizations and their worth are:

BOMBARDIERS (Global, 601, 604, 605, Express and 300)

It is a heavy jet that takes up to 10 passengers and a luxury and spacious cabin for meeting or simply relaxation. Thus, it takes about N100 million to maintain it annually. Two expatriates fly it, and each of them takes home an average of N1.5 million monthly. Three cabin crew members are on board the jet and their monthly package is N100,000.

GULFSTREAM (V, G550,11, IV,450)

These variants of jets are aircrafts with an international reach. They can be configured with seatings up to 18 passengers. An estimated N100 million annually is expected for their maintenance. N36 million is splashed on the two pilots annually. N3.6 million annually on three cabin crew annually.

FALCON X7

Arguably, it’s one of the most expensive jets among the lot. A whopping N150 million would be expended on maintenance annually. This includes staff salary, fuel, aviation levies, landing fees, remuneration of the maintenance engineering team and parking charges. It is a large cabin, long range business jet manufactured by Dassault Aviation.  It sits over 14 passengers, 4 cabin crew and two expatriate pilots.

HAWKER (800A and 900xp)

An average N80million is expended on the maintenance of these jets.  They are midsize twin engine corporate aircraft. They can be flown by one experienced pilot whose salary per annum revolves around N18 million . Two cabin crew members are needed on board.

GULFSTREAM G650

The main price of the aircraft is $65 million but other charges could have raised it to $72 million and according to US-based Forbes magazine, the Gulfstream G650 has an order book of 200 customers throughout the world.

“A $65 million price tag doesn’t seem to detract from the fascination with this incredible airplane. While the rest of the business aviation industry is battling the depressed economy, there seems to be a buoyant market in the US and abroad for this ultra-high-priced, high-performance jet.

“And why not? With a top speed of 92 per cent of the speed of sound (arguably the fastest civilian jet in the world), room for a basketball team, 8,000-statute-mile range and some of the most sophisticated avionics rivalling nearly anything in the sky, this airplane is perfect for doing business on a global scale.

“Because of its superlatives, including price, however, it also appeals greatly to the ‘if you’ve got it, flaunt it’ crowd,” Forbes said on its Brand Voice website.

Gulfstream described the aircraft as ultra-high-speed, ultra-long-range business jet and the gold standard in business aviation. The model was introduced in 2008, with a capacity for eight passengers and a crew of four on nonstop legs of 7,000 nautical miles (12,964 km) for standard configuration.

“That means it will link Dubai with New York and London with Buenos Aires. With its powerful Rolls-Royce BR725 engines, the G650 will cover shorter distances at a speed of Mach 0.925. No traditional business jet will take you closer to the speed of sound,” Gulfstream said on its website.

-FEMI OYEWALE