Omega Aviation (Isle of Man) is suing Presidential Aviation (PRD, Fort Lauderdale Executive) for breach of contract and negligence in Florida's Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court. In a filing dated March 14, 2025, Omega alleges a series of maintenance failures and negligent behaviour by Presidential Aviation that resulted in a serious runway incident and a business jet flying in an unairworthy and uninsured state because of missed maintenance deadlines and flawed inspections.

An attorney for Presidential Aviation told ch-aviation that the company has been in business since 1997 and has a consistent record of prioritising safety. "It is denying the baseless allegations presented against them by Omega," she said.

Series of alleged maintenance issues

In late 2022, Omega Aviation, an Isle of Man based company which is not a certified operator, purchased a Learjet 45XR, N45LX (msn 45-332), and hired Presidential to conduct a pre-purchase inspection and manage the aircraft's ongoing maintenance requirements. But Omega says the inspection was "severely flawed" and that it would not have bought the business jet had they known the extent of its problems.

After acquiring the aircraft, Omega discovered various issues, including but not limited to a fuel flex line leak, a water leak into the baggage compartment, toilet assembly corrosion, a faulty spoiler causing low pressure, and cracked left and right horizontal stabiliser fairings. Omega says these should have been discovered and reported during the inspection.

Omega Aviation signed up Presidential Aviation to undertake ongoing maintenance and management of the aircraft before these issues came to light. However, it alleges Presidential was also negligent regarding its management services and further inspections. This included a troubled Phase D inspection in early 2024.

"Issues arose when the defendant engaged sub-contractors to perform services and make repairs for the aircraft," Omega's complaint says. "After the aircraft was returned to plaintiff, the aircraft still experienced numerous issues that should have been corrected during the comprehensive Phase D inspection."

Further, Omega alleges that Presidential told it that the jet's Phase C inspection was due by December 31, 2022, when the correct date was April 14, 2022. "As a result, the aircraft had been flying for many months beyond the limit, including the plaintiff's acceptance flight in October 2022," the complaint reads.

In addition, Omega Aviation says that Presidential Aviation failed to provide the correct date for a 2024 Phase B inspection, claiming it was due by September 31, 2024, when the correct date was April 14.

"As a result, the aircraft operated in a non-airworthy condition in light of its non-compliance with the required inspections," the filing notes.

Runway incident

In July 2024, the aircraft's left tyre ruptured during a landing. Omega Aviation alleges this was caused by the incorrect assembly of the wiring wheel speed transducers in the main left landing gear wheels during the Phase D inspection conducted by Presidential Aviation.

The complaint says that as a result, the aircraft was no longer airworthy and repairs cost over USD100,000. It also says the people onboard are lucky to be alive. "It takes little imagination to understand what can happen if Presidential Aviation continues to conduct fake inspections of airplanes."

After that incident, Omega engaged a different company to inspect the aircraft. It says the inspecting company, ACC Columbia Jet Service, was "speechless of the status of the aircraft" and sent a report to the US Federal Aviation Administration, having found multiple problems, including dry aileron brush seals, debris in the rudder trim tab, improperly fitted screws in the aft part of the left-hand pylon, a loose electrical connector inside the bullet fairing, missing bolts on the lower part of the aft bullet fairing, missing bolts on centre bullet fairing to aft bullet fairing, and excessive wear and damage on the majority of the flight control cables, among other things.

Omega went on to terminate its contract with Presidential and engaged a new service provider.

Poor record keeping

A subsequent audit indicated Presidential Aviation had neglected to properly keep up its maintenance records. "The absence of proper airframe logbook entries will negatively impact the future resale value of the aircraft," the complaint says. "After defendant breached the parties' agreement and exhibited reckless disregard for the safety of those operating the aircraft, plaintiff reviewed the aircraft's inspection history and found material errors in the defendant's representations."

The alleged misconduct included scheduling future inspections based on the date that the prior inspection was due, not when it was done, resulting in future inspections happening after their due dates. Omega says this happened on three occasions. "Due to the aircraft's non-compliance with its inspection requirements, the aircraft was not airworthy, and in addition to being an unsafe aircraft for its occupants, the aircraft was not covered by its insurance provider."

"The defendant's failure to capture the misrepresentation of inspection deadlines significantly distorted the purchase price of the aircraft, caused the aircraft to be grounded for an unreasonable amount of time, and seriously endangered the life and safety of the crew and passengers of the aircraft."

In the filing, Omega Aviation says Presidential Aviation breached the contract by failing to maintain records, manuals, and other documents associated with the jet, failed to schedule timely services, and failed to perform all necessary maintenance. It says that by doing so, Presidential was negligent and the actions caused Omega damage, including but not limited to a reduction in the aircraft's value.

Omega Aviation did not respond to a request for comment.

The matter, Omega Aviation Ltd v Presidential Aviation Inc (case no: CACE25003655) is next scheduled for mention on June 9, 2025. According to the ch-aviation Commercial Aviation Aircraft Data modue, the Learjet remains at Omega Aviation and is operated under Part 91 private certification.