In yet another case of a deadbeat airline failing to pay its dues, Nigeria's Chanchangi Airlines (5B) has been given 30 days to pay Ethiopian Airlines (ET) its debt of USD772'000 for maintenance rendered to an unspecified Chanchangi aircraft (possibly a B727) and engine back in February 2004. |
| A Chanchangi 727 (top left) in Addis Ababa in 2008 (RStehmann) |
Ethiopian Airlines' legal counsel, Hussana Negash, told the court in Addis Ababa on April 1 that a settlement agreement between ET and CAL had been agreed to on June 8, 2010 in which Chanchangi pledged to pay the USD772'000 owed within 60 days.
Originally, Chanchangi had agreed to pay the money within 60 days provided it got financing from sources. That deal fell through, forcing the parties to renegotiate terms such that Chanchangi would now pay USD584'072.62 dollars, to begin with, and receive the engine maintained by Ethiopian. It would then pay the USD188'273.83 balance over four months in equal instalments.
Failing that, Chanchangi was to pay a fine amounting to 12pc of the total sum.
In the end, Chanchangi did fail to make the required payments and Ethiopian took the case to the Federal High Court on January 25, 2013, based on the June 2010 agreement, to resolve their differences in court.
Unsurprisingly, Chanchangi failed to make any representations during the initial hearing on the 1 April hearing as no representatives from the Kaduna-based carrier pitched up.
"The presiding judge, Justice Hussan Yimah, had then fixed April 8 for further hearing to give CAL time to appear before it.
He had also ordered ET to forward evidence of service of the summons to the defendant on the adjourned date, to enable the court take appropriate action should CAL fail to appear."
Source [PR News]
Justice Yimah adjourned the case to May 8 to give CAL another chance to appear.
The proverbial "Nice Guy" of the African MRO trade, Ethiopian is also embroiled in another dispute with Gabon Airlines (GY) in which the defunct Gabonese carrier was given thirty days as of 24 October 2012, to pay up over €750'000 it owes the
facility for repairs and maintenance done to its Boeing 767-200 (MSN 21877 | TR-LHP), now stored in Addis Ababa since 2010.
