Fabulous Lifestyles Of Nigeria’s Female Private Jets Owners

Some Nigerian women, just five of them, for now are taking more daring leaps than even renowned industrialists around the globe. While an opinion poll has given credence to the fact that, in the midst of famine, Nigeria has more private jets than anywhere in the world, the numbers of Nigerian women flying private jets are said to be on the increase by the day

These daring women, National Enquirer can authoritatively reveal cope with spending a whopping $550,000 (N121m @ N220 dollar rate) on private jet maintenance annually.
The expenses include the cost of hiring at least two pilots for an aircraft, remuneration of the maintenance engineering team, routine overseas maintenance, as well as the cost of fuelling; over-flyer, landing and parking charges.

According to industry experts, it costs an average of $550,000 (N121m) annually to maintain a private jet. Private Aircraft, we gathered cost more to maintain per seat mile than airliners. In Nigeria, there are about 70 private jets with 80 per cent (56) of them registered in foreign numbers such as South Africa, United States and some European countries.

The costs of maintaining a private jet can be categorized as ‘direct’, ‘variable’ and ‘fixed’. The direct and variable costs relate to the aircraft’s usage whereas the fixed costs are applicable regardless of how much the aircraft is flown and make up the most intimidating part of aircraft ownership.

Included in the fixed costs are crew salaries, aircraft management fees, maintenance, insurance and hangarage. Depreciation and interest should also be considered here.

Direct costs include expenses such as fuel and engine programmes whereas the variable costs cover airport landing and handling charges, crew travel and subsistence etc. If we use the Learjet 45 as an example, an owner flying 200 hours per year should expect to pay around £500k p.a.

It is reported that in December 2010, private jet owners in Nigeria were spending at least $52.3m (N11.5bn) annually to maintain the planes and the expatriate pilots flying them because of the failure of the owners to register the jets locally. Your darling magazine, National Enquirer takes a look at the fabulous lifestyles of Nigeria’s 5 female private jets owners, their business concerns and how they cope with the stupendous spending.

Chief (Mrs.) Folorunsho Alakija

She’s currently tagged as Africa’s richest woman, according to the famous Forbes magazine. The woman of substance who cut her teeth as a fashion designer is one of Nigeria’s first female billionaires and the founder of Famfa Oil, a Nigerian company that owns a substantial interest in OML 127, a lucrative oil block on the Agbami deep water oilfield in Nigeria. She is said to be worth at least $3.2 billion and also said to own at least $100 million in real estate and a private jet worth $46 million. Recently, she’s atop the list of the British media for being one of the notable Africans ruling the real estate circle in Britain.

Daisy Danjuma

Not much is known about her business concern aside the fact that, she’s one of Nigeria’s richest gold and diamond purveyors. Her husband, Gen. Theophilus Danjuma (Retd.) is one of Nigeria’s billionaires of all time. The Danjumas’ are said to own one of the best properties ever built in Spain. Daisy who’s a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria was elected in 2003, she has served on numerous committees, among them are  the Chairman of the ECOWAS Parliament’s Women and Children’s Rights Committee and Senate Committee Chairman on Women Affairs and Youth Development. According to those who know her like the back of the hand, Senator Daisy’s greatest phobia is flying, most especially after the myriads of plane crashes in Nigeria, we gathered that, Senator Daisy Danjuma prefers the danger of driving from Abuja to Edo State and other places to gambling flying any aeroplane except when traveling abroad. The paragon of beauty has always craved owning a private jet because of the privilege of choosing and controlling the pilots and the aircraft. Her being aerophobic must have piled the pressure of getting herself a private jet.

Hajia Bola Shagaya

She has hobnobbed with more government administrations than anyone else you can think about in Nigeria. Known for the hashtag# AGIP, meaning any government in power-a daring attitude which seems to have paid off for her afterall. Hajia Shagaya’s was recently in the public scrutiny for allegedly trying to woo the new first lady, Aishat Buhari after her parasitic adventure with successive governments of IBB, Abacha, Obasanjo, Yar’Adua and Jonathan where majority believed she made her monies from. The Ilorin born boardroom colossus is the Managing Director of Practoil Limited, one of the largest importers and distributors of base oil in Nigeria, serving local lubricant blending plants.  The politician of PDP extract whose son lost the federal house of reps seat in the last election just acquired a Gulfstream G650 aircraft made in the United States. Shagaya is said to be the closest ally to the immediate past first lady, Dame Patience Jonathan and she is one of the richest women in Africa.

Dieziani Madueke

She’s the controversially embattled immediate past Petroleum Minister and the first female President of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Alison-Madueke was elected President of OPEC at the 166th General Meeting of the body in Vienna, Austria. She has held three significant positions in the Nigerian Federal Government. Alison-Madueke was appointed Transport Minister in July 2007. On December 23rd, 2008, she was named the Minister of Mines and Steel Development. In 2013, the Federal legislators accused Alison-Madueke of wasting N10 billion to charter and maintain private jet solely for her personal needs and those of her immediate family. She acquired a private jet worth $45m simply for serving the federal government of Nigeria between 2008 and 2015.

Angela Ebagua

She’s arguably Nigeria’s richest female banker. The Benin, Edo State born intelligent banker is the wife of billionaire businessman, Jide Omokore whose interests span in the oil trading and exploration, marine, haulage services, dredging engineering and property development. The well connected Angela Ebagua who recently caved-in to boardroom politics at Access Bank Plc honourably resigned as an Executive Director after serving the bank meritoriously with her wealth of experience. Industry watchers opined that, Angela was so powerful at Access Bank that, when the immediate past managing director, Aig Imokhuede stepped aside, many thought she was going to get the bank’s plum job as its MD. Though some school of thought believed the private jet Angela flies everytime belongs to her husband, Jide Omokore, people in the aviation have since corrected the version that, her hubby, Omokore has quite a number of private jets just like his very close pal, Kola Aluko, Angela, we were reliably informed owns one just like she has properties in choice areas of the world.

Jite Usman