On Tuesday, June 18, President Bola Tinubu departed from Lagos to attend the inauguration of South Africa’s President, Cyril Ramaphosa.
Again, this trip embarked by the Nigerian leader sparked huge controversy as the President was said to have travelled in a private jet belonging to his ally, Gilbert Chagoury, a Lebanese businessman.
Indeed, the government had made it known that the president will not be traveling with the presidential jet.
But trust Nigerians, questions and concerns have trailed this latest development even as we speak.
Nigerians are curious, curious to know more about the said private jet, who owns it, and if it was paid for.
President Tinubu In South Africa
You see, Tinubu arrived at Waterkloof Air Force Base, located on the outskirts of Pretoria, South Africa’s administrative capital, on Tuesday evening.
The South African presidential media team released video and photos of Tinubu stepping off a Dassault Falcon 8X aircraft.
However, it was gathered that the private jet with the registration 9H-GRC is owned by Chagoury Group.
Chagoury Group is a conglomerate owned by Gilbert Chagoury, a known business partner of President Tinubu.
Details Of The Private Jet
According to @avinngblog, an X account known for aviation news in Nigeria: “To be more precise: the Falcon 8X (9H-GRC) is owned by the Chagoury Group.
It is operated by Hyperion Aviation: 9H-GRC, Hyperion Aviation.”
The Federal Government frequently leases this Falcon 8X, due to reliability issues of the current PAF. 9H-GRC joined 5N-FGZ and 5N-FGW today on a trip to South Africa for the inauguration of the president.”
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Further investigation by SaharaReporters into an aircraft registration database confirms that the private jet, along with others owned by the group, is operated by Hyperion Aviation.
The Dassault Falcon 8X was initially operated by Aviation SA before being transferred to Amjet Executive.
The aircraft, first registered under the Chagoury Group, was subsequently operated by Hyperion Aviation, a business jet charter company based in Malta.
