Bright Simons, Vice-President of IMANI Africa, has announced that Ghana’s presidential Falcon Jet has been returned to the Ghana Air Force after completing an extended eight-month maintenance programme in France.
According to Simons, the aircraft arrived safely back in Ghana on Monday, 10 November, exactly eight months after it was sent to the Dassault Falcon Service maintenance facility at Paris Le Bourget for a mandatory 24-month and 1600-hour technical inspection.
He stated that the routine inspection uncovered major defects that required prolonged, specialised repairs.
“Whilst at PLB, it underwent a MANDATORY 24-month and 1600-hour technical inspection. During this extensive inspection, severe defects, affecting the fuel tank and a turbofan were discovered, triggering prolonged repairs that could only be done with manufacturer assistance at that specific Dassault facility,” he noted.
Simons added that the repair process took longer than expected due to difficulties in sourcing certain OEM-certified spare parts. However, all required procedures have now been completed.
“All the complex repairs, final tests (including leak tests, engine ground runs, and acceptance flights), have been successfully completed.
“The long delay in completing the repairs was due to some apparent difficulty sourcing certain OEM-certified spare parts. The aircraft has, however, been given the all clear by DFS now,” he said.
He further explained that a brief positioning flight from Marseille was undertaken before the aircraft’s delivery to Accra to address minor logistical arrangements.
With its return, the presidential jet has now passed all safety and performance assessments, including leak checks, engine ground runs and acceptance flights, and has been officially cleared for service by Dassault Falcon Service.
