The American company contracted to market Nigeria’s presidential Boeing 737-700 Business Jet has removed the aircraft from its sales platform, raising fresh questions over the status of the planned disposal.
Checks by PUNCH showed that the jet, previously displayed on the JetHQ website, was no longer listed among aircraft available for purchase.
In an email to The PUNCH, JetHQ’s Manager of Market Research, Laurie Barringer, confirmed that the firm had withdrawn the listing and advised that all further inquiries be directed to the Nigerian government.
“Thank you for your email. We no longer have the listing on the Boeing. You will need to reach out to the Nigerian Government for information as to what has become of the aircraft.
I appreciate your time Laurie Barringer, Manager of Market Research, JetHQ,” the email read.
Efforts to obtain clarification from the office of the National Security Adviser proved abortive, as media aide Ismail Garba failed to provide a response days after promising to do so.
The development follows an October 2025 report indicating that the jet listed by the Federal Government in July 2025 had remained unsold nearly four months after it was uploaded to the international sales platform.
At the time, email exchanges between JetHQ officials and The PUNCH confirmed the aircraft was still being marketed.
JetHQ’s Market Research Assistant, Marinell Nuevo, confirmed that the jet “remains available” but referred further inquiries to her superior.
Barringer later stated that the firm would disclose no further information beyond availability, describing additional details as proprietary.
“We do not provide this kind of information to anyone but the direct owner of the aircraft.
This is considered proprietary information. I hope you can understand.
“The only data that we can provide you is that the aircraft remains available for sale,” Barringer said.
Prior to its removal from the platform, records indicated that the presidential jet underwent partial refurbishment and major inspections at AMAC’s Basel facility in July 2024, including upgrades to first-class seating, new cabin carpeting, and C1–C2 maintenance checks.
A pre-owned Boeing 737 BBJ carries an average market value of about $56 million, depending on configuration and maintenance history, according to aircraftcostcalculator.com.
The aircraft, acquired in 2005 for $43 million under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, has remained a key part of the Presidential Air Fleet.
In July 2025, the Tinubu administration announced plans to sell it as part of a broader cost-cutting and fleet rationalisation programme amid rising public concern over government expenditure.
