The Presidency has clarified that the recently acquired aircraft for President Bola Tinubu is a refurbished Airbus A330, not a brand new jet, as some had assumed. Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga provided this clarification during an appearance on  Inside Sources with Laolu Akande over the weekend. He explained that the aircraft was added to the Presidential Air Fleet to replace the aging Boeing B737-700, which was originally acquired nearly two decades ago under former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration.

Onanuga emphasized that the decision to opt for a refurbished aircraft was driven by high maintenance costs and the deteriorating condition of older fleet aircraft, making their upkeep increasingly unsustainable. “It’s not President Tinubu’s plane; it belongs to the people of Nigeria; it is our property,” he stated, highlighting that the President sought National Assembly approval to acquire a cost-effective jet in sound condition rather than incurring excessive expenses on maintenance.

“The president did not buy a new jet; what he has is a refurbished jet—it has been used by somebody else before he got it, but it is a much newer model than the one President Buhari used,” Onanuga added. He recalled an incident in which President Tinubu had to charter a jet to the Netherlands after mechanical problems left the 20-year-old presidential aircraft grounded following a return flight from Saudi Arabia.

In response to safety concerns, Onanuga urged Nigerians to consider the President’s security, noting that the jet would also serve future administrations. “We want his safety so that he can hand over to whoever wants to take over from him,” he remarked.

The acquisition has sparked public backlash, with critics arguing that such expenditures are insensitive amid the economic hardships faced by many Nigerians, including soaring food prices and energy costs. Additionally, the Presidential Air Fleet has faced reliability issues in the past; Vice President Kashim Shettima was unable to attend the US-Africa Business Summit in May due to a malfunctioning jet, and a Falcon 900B presidential aircraft was put up for sale by the Nigerian Air Force in December 2023.