Felix Ofosu Kwakye, the Minister of State in charge of Government Communications, has said Ghana’s presidential jet is deemed unreliable by the Ghana Air Force.
According to Felix Ofosu Kwakye, the military has advised President Mahama against the use of Ghana’s presidential jet for presidential travel due to security concerns and frequent technical faults.
He further defended President John Dramani Mahama’s use of his brother’s private jet.
Felix Ofosu Kwakye detailed that Ghana has a deficit in terms of its ability to ferry the president, adding that Mahama prefers to use his brother’s aircraft, which he was using pending the arrival of the arrangement the state has made, rather than going to take taxpayers’ money to rent an aircraft.
He further quizzed how saving the country money becomes a problem for anybody.
Felix Ofosu Kwakye further disclosed that the Air Force has raised security concerns over the frequent breakdown of the Ghana Presidential jet.
Speaking on Top Story on Joy FM on Thursday, March 12, Felix Ofosu Kwakye explained, “The state of Ghana has a deficit in terms of its ability to ferry the president,” Mr Kwakye said, noting that “Before he became president, his brother had an aircraft that he was using. It is a fact well known to everybody.”
“The president says that rather than going to take taxpayers’ money to rent an aircraft, let me continue using that aircraft that I was using pending the arrival of the arrangement the state has made,” he stated.
“So I ask the question: how does saving the country money become a problem for anybody?” he asked.
He further added, “If it were the case that the state had an aircraft that was functioning and the president disregarded that and hopped into his brother’s aircraft and paid for it, in other words, rented it at a cost to the state, then there would be a legitimate basis to raise complaints of conflict of interest and profiteering by his brother”.
“The Air Force itself has said that because of security concerns and the frequent breakdown, they won’t recommend it be used for the president,” he said.
“They have indicated that its operations have proved unreliable and that it costs too much to maintain because the slightest movement requires repairs. Until then, the president says, ‘Let me use this arrangement that does not impose significant cost on the state pending the arrival of the aircraft,’” he explained.
“So it is not a permanent arrangement in any event. It is only because the state is constrained by the non-availability of a reliable aircraft.”
Meanwhile, the vice president of Ghana, Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, on Saturday, January 17, 2026, travelled to Guinea on board Ghana’s presidential jet, the Falcon 900EX.
Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang travels to Conakry, Guinea, to attend the investiture ceremony of Guinea’s President, Mamadi Doumbouya.
The vice president’s video confirmed that Ghana’s presidential jet is back in active service after undergoing an extended eight-month maintenance and repair programme in France.
A statement from the Jubilee House had earlier revealed when President John Dramani Mahama will resume flying in the Falcon EX jet, Ghana’s presidential jet.
According to the Jubilee House statement, President Mahama will only fly on the Falcon EX jet after the Air Force certifies it as safe, according to a statement from the Jubilee House.
The Jubilee House is quoted by TV3 to have said, “President Mahama will use Falcon EX only after the Air Force clears the jet as safe”.
Also, the Vice-President of IMANI Africa, Bright Simons, has revealed that Ghana’s presidential jet, the Falcon 900 Executive Jet, has returned home after eight months of repair work in France.
According to Bright Simons, Ghana’s presidential jet underwent a compulsory maintenance process while in France.
In a post on X, Bright Simons wrote, “Ghana’s presidential jet has been delivered safely back into the custody of the Ghana Air Force since Monday, the 10th of November. Exactly 8 months after it was sent to the Dassault Falcon Service MRO base at Paris Le Bourget (PLB).
Whilst at PLB, it underwent a MANDATORY 24-month and 1600-hour technical inspection”.
Mr Simons further detailed, “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.
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.
Before delivery to Accra, a positioning flight from Marseille, relating to minor logistics, was conducted”, his post concluded.
Watch the video below:
Presidential travels: Felix Ofosu Kwakye defends Mahama's use of brother's private jet.#JoyNews pic.twitter.com/Q0EiVIjR9T
— Joy 99.7 FM (@Joy997FM) March 12, 2026