United Nigeria Airlines Adds CRJ900ER on ACMI from CemAir

United Nigeria Airlines has expanded its wet-lease capacity with the addition of another Bombardier CRJ900ER, strengthening its domestic and regional operations as the carrier continues to rely on ACMI aircraft to support network growth. The 79-seat regional jet, registered ZS-CAU, is being leased from South African operator CemAir under a one-year agreement.

According to ADS-B tracking data, the 20.7-year-old aircraft entered service with United Nigeria Airlines on January 20, operating the high-frequency Abuja–Lagos route shortly after being ferried from Johannesburg via Libreville on January 18–19. Since entering service, the CRJ900ER has been deployed across the airline’s core domestic network, linking Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Ilorin, while also supporting regional services to Accra in Ghana.

United Nigeria Airlines confirmed that the ACMI agreement covers a 12-month period, providing the carrier with near-term capacity and operational flexibility. CemAir declined to comment on the contract. The aircraft seats 70 passengers in economy class and nine in business class, according to fleet data, offering a dual-class configuration well suited to Nigeria’s premium-heavy trunk routes.

The aircraft has a long operational history, having originally been delivered to Mesa Airlines in 2005, where it operated under the registration N938LR. It was remarketed in 2024 and subsequently stored in Johannesburg from February that year. The jet was re-registered by September 2025 and briefly operated under CemAir domestic flight numbers before being placed on wet lease with United Nigeria Airlines.

This latest addition complements an existing CRJ900LR already wet-leased from CemAir. The earlier aircraft, ZS-CMO, has been in service with United Nigeria Airlines since November 4, 2025, and is primarily used on domestic routes between Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Benin City, Asaba and Ilorin, with occasional regional rotations to Accra. Together, the two CRJ900s provide the airline with added frequency and scheduling resilience on high-demand sectors.

United Nigeria Airlines continues to depend heavily on ACMI capacity while it prepares for a longer-term fleet transition. The carrier has signed a sale and purchase agreement with Southwest Airlines for six Boeing 737-800 aircraft and has expressed interest in acquiring four additional units. Deliveries are expected between the first quarter of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027, which would gradually reduce reliance on wet-leased aircraft.

In the meantime, the airline also operates one Embraer E190 on wet lease from Windrose Airlines and three Airbus A320-200s from Fly2Sky. Its owned fleet includes four Embraer ERJ145s, three of which are active, and one Boeing 737-500 that remains inactive.

For CemAir, the deal further expands the international deployment of its CRJ900 fleet, which currently includes seven aircraft, with additional units expected to enter service in the coming months.

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Sources: AirGuide Business airguide.info, bing.com, ch-aviation.com