McDan Aviation Accuses GACL of Attempting to Collapse Its Business Amid FBO Agreement Dispute

McDan Aviation Limited has accused the Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) of actions aimed at collapsing its business and disregarding judicial processes in the ongoing dispute over the termination of its Fixed Base Operation (FBO) agreement at Kotoka International Airport.

In a press release issued by the company, McDan Aviation — Ghana’s first indigenous provider of FBO services — expressed concern over recent developments involving the airport operator, describing them as an attempt to undermine its operations and significant investment at Terminal 1 of the airport.

The company indicated that it invested millions of dollars to develop Ghana’s first private FBO terminal at Terminal 1 under a landmark licence agreement signed with GACL in August 2022. According to McDan Aviation, the facility has helped position Ghana as a premium aviation hub by supporting private business aviation, tourism, and investment inflows.

McDan Aviation also stated that for five years it consistently honoured its rent obligations, including periods when the facility was not operational. The company admitted experiencing a delay in rent payment but explained that the situation was temporary and triggered by operational challenges amid the current global business climate.

According to the company, the outstanding amounts were later settled in good faith, stressing that describing the delay as a fundamental breach of contract does not reflect the true nature of its longstanding partnership with GACL.

The company further alleged that several attempts to engage GACL to resolve the issue were unsuccessful. It also accused the airport authority of disregarding key provisions of their contractual agreement.

McDan Aviation said the agreement clearly requires GACL to provide a 90-day notice before any eviction action can be taken. The company argued that the airport operator failed to comply with this provision, thereby violating the contractual arrangement that was meant to safeguard the company’s substantial investment.

The company also claimed that the situation escalated after GACL allegedly ignored a court injunction served on it on March 10, 2026.

According to McDan Aviation, officials of the airport authority forcibly entered the terminal in the early hours of March 11, 2026, at about 1:00 a.m., and removed valuable equipment and property belonging to the company.

McDan Aviation described the action as a deliberate defiance of the injunctive process and a clear breach of contractual obligations.

“This sequence of events reveals a troubling pattern,” the company stated, adding that GACL not only breached the 90-day notice requirement but also acted contrary to the rule of law.

The company said it is pursuing all available legal remedies to address what it describes as unlawful termination of the agreement, breach of contractual rights, and contempt of court.

McDan Aviation reiterated its commitment to protecting its investment and defending its legitimate business expectations. As a wholly Ghanaian enterprise under the McDan Group, the company said it remains committed to supporting national development and advancing Ghana’s aviation sector.

The dispute follows the termination of the FBO agreement between GACL and McDan Aviation Handling Services Limited after prolonged disagreements over unpaid licence fees, rent, and royalties related to operations at Terminal 1 of the airport.

GACL has maintained that McDan Aviation defaulted on its payment obligations shortly after the agreement took effect in 2022. The airport authority said that although the company later settled arrears covering the period from 2022 to 2024 after access to the facility was restricted in late 2024, further debts accumulated due to continued non-payment.

According to GACL, no payments were received for rent and royalties throughout 2025, while the operating licence fee due since 2022 also remained outstanding.

The airport operator said it issued several notices and reminders throughout 2025 urging the company to settle the outstanding obligations. It added that although McDan Aviation proposed a payment plan and issued three post-dated cheques, the company later asked that the cheques not be deposited due to financial constraints.

Following the expiration of the required notice period and repeated reminders, GACL said it formally terminated the FBO agreement on January 16, 2026.

Subsequently, the airport authority secured and locked up Terminal 1 on February 9, 2026, and directed McDan Aviation to remove its belongings from the premises within seven days in accordance with the termination clauses of the contract.

GACL said several reminders were issued for the removal of the company’s items, but no response was received.

Despite the termination, McDan Aviation later made a payment on February 27, 2026, in the Ghana cedi equivalent of US$265,000, which GACL said represents roughly half of the total outstanding debt owed.

The airport operator has insisted that the agreement has been “duly and finally terminated” and indicated that it will continue to pursue recovery of the remaining debt from the McDan Group.

GACL also revealed that the McDan Group is currently engaged in a separate court dispute with the airport authority over a 16-acre parcel of land, which it claims the group has developed commercially despite owing millions of dollars in unpaid obligations.

The airport authority has therefore urged companies doing business with it to honour their financial commitments, warning that entities that fail to meet their obligations will face full debt recovery processes in line with contractual agreements.

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