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This is the famous “aircraft graveyard” at Benin City Airport, Edo State.
The photo shows Okada Air’s abandoned fleet.
Okada Air. Owned by Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, the Esama of Benin. In the late 80s/early 90s it was Nigeria’s biggest private airline. Nicknamed “The Airline of the Nation” because tickets were cheap and flights were frequent.
Most of his jets are BAC-1-11s, British Aircraft Corporation 1-11.
That’s the twin-engine jet with engines mounted at the back and T-tail.
You can spot them by the rear engines and the shape.
Okada had one of the largest BAC-1-11 fleets in Africa.
You can also see a few other types mixed in: some Fokkers and maybe a Boeing 707/727 in there too, under the hangar.
Why they’re abandoned:
1997 shutdown: NCAA grounded Okada Air in 1997 over safety/maintenance issues.
The airline never recovered. After grounding, Chief Igbinedion couldn’t afford maintenance, insurance, or parking fees. The planes just sat there.
Over the years, engines, avionics, seats, anything valuable got stripped and sold. What’s left are the “shells” you see in your photo.
Benin Airport became their final parking lot. Locals call it an “aviation museum” or “boneyard”.
BAC-1-11 note:
BAC-1-11 was a popular short-haul jet in the 60s-80s.
Quiet cabin, but by the 90s it was old, noisy, and fuel-hungry.
Most airlines retired them. Okada kept flying them because they were cheap to buy second-hand.
Today, Benin Airport still has a few of these rusting frames. FAAN tried to clear some in 2018, but many remain. It’s a symbol of Nigeria’s 90s aviation boom-and-bust.