Air Peace loses $42m to aircraft damage, ground handling

Air Peace has said repeated damage to its aircraft by ground-handling companies has cost the airline about $42 million in lost revenue, with three of its aircraft sustaining major damage in the past year.

The airline said the incidents, involving ground-handling equipment operated by the Skyway Aviation Handling Company Plc and the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc, have disrupted its operations and left aircraft grounded for extended periods.

The airline’s spokesperson, Efe Whiskey, disclosed this in a telephone interview, saying Air Peace records aircraft damage from ground-handling operations about twice a year on average.

According to him, three major incidents were recorded within the past 12 months, including two in 2026.

“The number of ground handling accidents that we have experienced thus far, on average, SAHCO and NAHCO damage our aircraft at least twice a year,” Whiskey said.

He explained that while the handling companies were responsible for repairing the physical damage, the airline bore the financial burden of lost revenue whenever an affected aircraft was taken out of service.

“The revenue lost so far, especially from one aircraft, is $42m. It is the airline, of course, that loses. They don’t pay for that revenue. They only pay for the damage,” he said.

Whiskey said the handling companies had agreed to pay $3.8m for repairs to the latest damaged aircraft, while $3.2m had already been paid to repair another aircraft damaged on Boxing Day.

He added that the financial losses could increase when damaged aircraft components had to be transported overseas for repairs or when foreign engineers were brought into Nigeria to carry out specialised work.

“There are also scenarios where there is damage to aircraft, and we have to bring people from abroad to come and fix it,” he said.

The airline also incurs costs for towing damaged aircraft and cleaning affected areas, he added.

Whiskey expressed concern over the possibility of further incidents, saying previous patterns suggested that Air Peace could continue to experience aircraft damage from ground-handling operations.

One of the major incidents occurred on December 26, 2025, when ground-handling equipment damaged one of Air Peace’s newly acquired Embraer 195-E2 aircraft at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

The incident disrupted the aircraft’s operations and contributed to flight disruptions.

Air Peace also reported an earlier incident in January 2023 involving NAHCO equipment, which the airline said was the third occurrence involving the company’s equipment within a month.

The airline’s latest complaint has renewed concerns over ground-handling safety and the operational and financial consequences of damage to aircraft on the ground.