Nigeria’s Ibom Air has decided to increase its planned fleet of Airbus A220s, as demand outstrips deliveries of the aircraft from the OEM.
The regional carrier, which is wholly owned by the government of Nigeria’s Akwa Ibom State but which operates as an independent private enterprise, placed an order for 10 A220-300s with Airbus in October 2021. The first was delivered in November 2023.
However, the airline has now purchased another A220-300 from a separate source, lessor Carlyle Aviation Partners, in what the airline describes as “a strategic move to boost its capacity and meet growing demand for its product.”
Ibom took the decision to acquire the latest aircraft because of “demand for the airline’s product outpacing the delivery schedule of the order.”
Delivery of the latest aircraft took place at Maastricht Airport, Netherlands, July 11.
The addition of this aircraft will bring Ibom Air’s fleet of A220s to 11, after the delivery of the outstanding nine units. Notably, the new purchase was financed domestically by Nigeria’s Fidelity and Union Banks, with Fidelity as the majority partner.
Ibom Air now has a fleet of seven aircraft: five Bombardier CRJ 900s and the two A220-300s. The CRJs will gradually be phased out as more A220s arrive. The airline operates services between six domestic destinations - Uyo, Abuja, Calabar, Enugu, Lagos and Port Harcourt – as the Ghanaian capital, Accra. It intends to widen its route network as more aircraft are delivered.
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