Want an aircraft on the cheap?

If so, hurry up and register to take part in public auctions being held by Kenya Airport Authority (KAA) at different airports, including Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta, between 17-22NOV21. A total of 73 aircraft will come under the hammer, among them a variety of freighters. Interested buyers can inspect the aircraft immediately.

KAA’s main aim is to get rid of abandoned planes for which their owners have not paid parking fees for a long time, having ignored repeated demand notes from the airports to transfer the money. Given the poor condition of many of the aircraft, they do not expect the auction to flush much cash into their till.

Something for every taste
The auction list includes well-known aircraft models, with most of them have long since seen better days, including DC-8s, various Cessna models, B707s, or a variety of Antonov 12 freighters. Hence, there is something for every taste, as a closer look at the aircraft lineup reveals.
The pricelist published by the airport authority, is also wide-ranging, starting at the bottom level of US$44.93 (sic!) for a British Aerospace BAe 748 parked at Nairobi Wilson Airport, and ending with a Cessna 206 Super Skywagon, listed at US$94,342.50, also sidelined at Wilson Airport. A special bargain might be a Lockheed Hercules L-100-30, for which the airport demands a minimum US$792.03. The robust freighter can uplift 23 tons and operate nonstop over distances of 2,500 km with full payload. Even today, many airlines such as North America's Lynden Air Cargo, for instance, still have this rugged aircraft in their fleets.

What you see is what you get
The 4 upcoming auctions have a precursor: Already in mid-2020, Kenya Airport Authority asked owners to remove their aircraft and pay the accrued fees. If not, they would risk the planes being auctioned off, as is now scheduled from 17-22NOV21. The airports have no illusions about the revenue generated in the process. Eventually, some of the abandoned aircraft will be given a new opportunity to become airborne again if their new owners invest in their technical overhaul. However, that will only be a handful, since most of the aircraft listed by KAA are in too poor a condition to be reactivated.

Flying or dining
Complaints after purchase are excluded. That is the game rule. Another condition is that the new owners must remove their “new” aircraft from the airport within seven days from the date of the auction. If they fail, KAA will impose a storage charge of US$90 per day. Aircraft not removed from the airport will be forfeited. Since many of the planes are currently in an inoperable state, they will likely be trucked off the airport once their wings and tail units have been removed.
And then? Perhaps some will be converted to become a bar, restaurant, or cafe, and put to new use. A worse fate awaits those planes that have not found a buyer. They will end up in the scrap press.
Auction dates and times (local) are as follows:
Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta: 10 a.m. on 17NOV21 / Nairobi Wilson: 2.30 p.m. on 17NOV21 / Mombasa: 10 a.m. on 19NOV21 / Lokichoggio: 10 a.m. on 22NOV21.
Potential buyers do not need to be physically present.

Heiner Siegmund

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