The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria has uncovered a fresh $78 million debt owed the International Air Transport Association by Arik air.
The new debt was uncovered as the old management of Arik Airlines failed to pay IATA monies owed for the services that were rendered to it.
There have been reports on how AMCON reduced the airline’s flight services to about 30 per cent after the takeover.
However, Chief Executive Officer of S&T, Mr. Simon Tumba and Media Consultant to AMCON stated that the reports were stating the obvious.
According to him, after AMCON takeover, the receiver manager had announced the cut down of flights due to aircraft unavailability, which had shrunk from 30 to about 10.
Before the takeover, Arik had suspended its flight operations to the John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, United States, claiming that the two Airbus A330-200 aircraft dedicated to the route have been taken to France for C check at the same time.
Equally more than eight aircrafts are currently grounded at the tarmac making it difficult to meet their routine commercial flights.
Tumba further said the new management is actually working on ensuring the return of five of the airline’s aircraft stating that when those arrive the airline’s management may choose to look at lucrative routes to fly.
Tumba also lamented that the carrier was yet to remit pensions to pension administrator with debts owed to service providers all over the world.
He further alleged that the new management of the airline had no record of operations of the airline since 2015, making it difficult to trace its transactions as the former management was not being cooperative in the matter.
“Arik is very critical to air transport in Nigeria. AMCON wants to manage the airline and return it to profitability. One man used to decide everything. There was no board. Everything rotated from one man,” he said.
