Carlyle Aviation Partners has declined to comment on reports from Senegal that Infrastructure, Land and Air Transport Minister Yankhoba Diémé had ordered the lessor to remove aircraft stationed at Dakar Blaise Diagne International, warning that any delay would incur a daily penalty of XOF1 billion CFA francs (USD1.78 million).
The dispute centres on four aircraft - two A319-100s, 6V-AMA (msn 2897) and 6V-AMB (msn 3078), and two A321-200s, 6V-AMC (msn 1881) and 6V-AMD (msn 1921) - that were leased to Air Sénégal (HC, Dakar Blaise Diagne International) by three Irish special-purpose vehicles (SPVs) affiliated with Carlyle Aviation. The lessor alleges that Air Sénégal failed to pay rent, properly maintain the aircraft, or return them in accordance with the lease terms, sparking a protracted legal battle.
In a filing before the Supreme Court of the State of New York, the SPVs said they had invoked the Cape Town Convention in June 2025 to repossess the aircraft after Air Sénégal ignored a March 2025 repossession order from the Commercial Court of Dakar.
ADS-B data shows one A319 (6V-AMA) and one A321 (6V-AMC) were placed in storage in Dakar on June 23, 2025. The other A319 (6V-AMB) was flown to Naples Capodichino, Italy, on March 28, 2025, while the second A321 (6V-AMD) was ferried to Châteauroux Déols Marcel Dassault, France, on September 19, 2024.
The lessors claim that Air Sénégal unlawfully continued to operate the aircraft for several months after lease termination in August 2024, with two jets flying until June 2025, and that at least one is no longer airworthy due to poor maintenance.
Meanwhile, on July 30, the Dakar Commercial Court lifted an earlier order that had frozen Air Sénégal’s funds in the IATA Bank Settlement Plan (BSP) in connection with the dispute.
ch-aviation has repeatedly requested comment from Air Sénégal without a response.
