Desmond Mgboh, Kano
The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar has assured Nigerians that the nation’s air force (NAF) is now equipped to combat insurgency and banditry in the land.
He spoke against the backdrop of the re-activation of three L-39ZA aircrafts, namely NAF352, NAF354 and NAF364 by a Czech-based company, Aero Vodochody Aerospace.
Speaking at the handover ceremony which took place at the 403 NAF Training School, Kano, he disclosed that six additional aircrafts would be re-activated before the end of 2019.
He said the impact the re-activation of the aircraft would go beyond the training of the officers, adding that it comes with several benefits.
He added that re-activating the aircrafts in the country had saved a lot money and had helped to build the capacity of the officers given that “our engineers and technicians participated right from the beginning.”
He appreciated the Federal government’s efforts towards ensuring that air officers are effective and efficient in their assignment, saying that “President Muhammadu Buhari is highly committed to ensuring that all that is required for us to be able to address some of the fundamental issues of internal security facing Nigeria are being addressed.
“The support provided by the Federal government has no doubt had a positive impact on the ability of the NAF to meet the operational needs and requirements of the armed forces, enhanced our efficiency and improved provision of welfare and other services to our personnel.
He charged the officers to ensure that the reactivated aircrafts and other equipment in their custody are put to optimum and efficient use.
He appreciated the contribution of the technical partners from the Czech Republic, whom he said had been very professional.
In his address, the Ambassador of Czech Republic in Nigeria, Marek Skolil, traced the bilateral relationship between Czech and Nigeria in 1961, pointing out that the country has always remained an ally even during the civil war.
According to him, “for 33 years of service here in Nigeria, this aircraft has proved to be rugged, reliable and a pilot-friendly platform, used for the training of several generations of Nigeria Air Force pilots.
“Military-technical cooperation of Czech with Nigeria certainly did not stop at that. As from 2014, my country supported Nigerian Army as well as the Nigeria Air Force with equipment, materials, training and technical assistance to combat the insurgency in the North-East of the country.”