UPDATED : Nigeria Air plane lands in Abuja airport amid unveiling controversy

One of Nigeria Air aircraft was sighted at the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja tarmac on Friday ahead of the planned unveiling ceremony.

The plane identified by its green colour logo arrived at the Abuja airport from Addis Ababa.

It was gathered that the aircraft has been moved from the local wing where it landed, for the unveiling ceremony late Friday.

On Wednesday, Aviation and Aerospace Minister, Hadi Sirika, confirmed an aircraft in Nigeria Air colours is on its way to Nigeria.

READ ALSO :VIDEO: Nigeria Air finally lands in Abuja

The development has created serious uproar, as experts, and stakeholders questioned the rationale behind the launch barely 72 hours to the end of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

The key players also wondered how the aircraft can fly into the country without getting an Air Operating Certificate, AOC, from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA.

The Airline Operators of Nigeria AON through its legal team forwarded a letter, calling on President Buhari to stop the aviation minister from unveiling Nigeria Air as a case on the matter is pending in court.

The AON said the unveiling of Nigeria Air violates the order of the Federal High Court in Lagos which restrains the minister from taking any step regarding the Nigeria Air project.

But reacting to the arrival of the Nigeria Air plane in Abuja on Friday, Sirika expressed delight over the development.

“We are here. To Almighty God be all the glory. It has been a very long, tedious, daunting and difficult path. We thank everyone for the support. This, by the will of God, will be for us and generations to come. Ya Allah make it beneficial for our country and humanity, ” the outgoing minister tweeted on his Twitter handle.