Why it is on record
Founded by Sir Gabriel Igbinedion, Esama of Benin — the first private airline to operate a BAC One-Eleven and Boeing 707 fleet at scale after the 1979 Aviation Liberalisation Decree. At peak the largest privately-owned African airline by fleet.
Record held
First Nigerian private airline at jet-fleet scale; largest privately-owned African fleet at peak.
Deep dive
Okada Air, founded in 1983 by Chief Gabriel Igbinedion (the Esama of Benin), was the first privately owned scheduled airline in Nigeria and the largest private domestic carrier of the late 1980s and early 1990s. At its peak it operated 22 aircraft including BAC 1-11s and Boeing 727s. Its decline through the late 1990s and eventual cessation in 1997 marked the end of the first private aviation cohort.