The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) has grounded several aircraft belonging to Arik Air due to an outstanding debt of $2.5 million.
This follows a court order issued by the Federal High Court, as detailed in a statement released on Tuesday by Abdullahi Musa, NAMA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection.
The court’s order, stemming from a judgment in favor of Atlas Petroleum International Ltd, directed NAMA to enforce the grounding of Arik Air’s planes.
The enforcement began on July 19, 2024, and was backed by a recent ruling by Honorable Justice O. A. Adeniyi of the FCT High Court. The attached aircraft include models with registrations B737-700/5N-MJF, B737-800/5N-MJQ, DASH8-Q400, and 5N-BKX.
The legal battle dates back to March 2016 when Arik Air appealed a Lagos State High Court decision to the Court of Appeal. The appeal was dismissed in September 2021, and a subsequent attempt to appeal to the Supreme Court was denied in January 2024.
NAMA stated that although Arik obtained an ex parte order to stop further execution of the court’s directive, they have yet to be formally served. To prevent any potential interference with the aircraft, NAMA has complied with the Supreme Court’s order by grounding the planes.
The Minister of Aviation, a senior legal practitioner, is committed to upholding the Supreme Court’s directive, ensuring that the grounding remains in effect until the legal disputes are resolved.
The agency has urged all parties involved to expedite the resolution process so that Arik Air can resume its flight operations.
Arik Air’s CEO, Roy Ilegbodu, said he wasn’t given prior warning or consultation before the directive was enforced.
