Shocking: Airforce Runway Cannot Carry Super Tucano Fighter Jets, Says American Suppliers |The Source

By Uche Mbah

Nigeria may lose the $493 million the Government deposited to buy Super Tucano jets from the United States of America, USA. The American suppliers, allegedly, say the runway at the Airforce’s  Kainji Airstrip, is defective.

The Senate committee on Airforce, Tuesday, made this shocking situation known during the ongoing Budget  defence

Recall that the sum of $463 million had been deposited by the Federal Government in 2018 for the purchase of Tuscano fighter Jets to fight the Boko Haram terrorist group. However, the American Government had insisted  they would supply the Aircraft in 2020.  2019 was an election year in Nigeria, and analysts believe America was waiting the election out.

But the Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Air Force, Senator Michael Nnachi (Ebonyi South), while presenting the budget report of the Air Force to the Senate Committee on Appropriation, said that if the fighter jets  were not bought, the deposit  could be lost. According to him, when the Americans who came to inspect the runway at Kainji said the runway cannot carry the jet.

According to him, additional N9billion is needed to take care of the runway, or else Nigeria will lose the deposit and the Aircraft.

“It is very serious issue, they are running around, they have gone to the Finance Minister, they have gone to CBN, they have gone to the Senate President. The money needed is not part of the main budget”, he said.

“Nigeria has already paid $493 million for the aircraft and the officials of the American company who came to Nigeria last week said that the Kainji runway is not capable of carrying the fighter jets. They said that Nigeria will forfeit the Aircraft if the situation of the runway persists.”

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Jubril Barau, in his own contribution, said that the committee will look inward to provide funds to address the challenges in the 2021 budget.

The questions perplexed Nigerians are asking are: If the FG and the Airforce Leadership did not know the capacity of the high profile jet, and why nothing has been done about the runway og the Airstrip.