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| Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame |
As Air Marshal approaches the first anniversary of his appointment as Chief of the Air Staff on 30 October 2026, the Nigerian Air Force has released a detailed accounting of its operational tempo.
Between November 2025 and September 2026, the service recorded more than 6,100 flying hours and over 2,900 sorties while consuming close to 10 million litres of Jet A-1 fuel in support of national security operations.
The figures, released in a statement by Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, Director of Public Relations and Information, go beyond raw statistics. They reflect a deliberate emphasis on intelligence-led, purpose-driven missions—precision air strikes, armed reconnaissance, surveillance, close air support, and related tasks—designed to degrade hostile elements, disrupt their freedom of action, and amplify the effectiveness of surface forces.
“Central to this effort has been intelligence-led mission planning, with operations guided by actionable intelligence, defined objectives and assessments of mission outcomes,” the statement noted. The focus, Ejodame stressed, remains ensuring every sortie serves a clear operational purpose and contributes meaningfully to national security.
These numbers arrive against the backdrop of Nigeria’s persistent multi-front security challenges: residual Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) activity in the North-East, entrenched banditry and kidnapping networks in the North-West, and residual threats elsewhere. Recent operations illustrate the intensity.
In mid-to-late October 2026 alone, coordinated air strikes under Operation Hadin Kai neutralised key ISWAP figures, including individuals linked to the group’s leadership structures, and destroyed logistics assets in the Lake Chad region. Separate campaigns under Operation Fansan Yamma have targeted bandit concentrations in the North-West, with air assets providing critical support to ground clearance efforts. @nigairforce
Air Marshal Aneke, who assumed office on 30 October 2025 after serving as Air Officer Commanding, Mobility Command, brought a command philosophy centred on sustaining “a highly motivated, professional and mission-ready force capable of delivering decisive airpower in synergy with surface forces.”
Born in 1972 in Makurdi and commissioned in 1993 as a member of the Nigerian Defence Academy’s 40th Regular Course, he is an experienced pilot with thousands of flying hours across multiple platforms and holds advanced degrees in management, international affairs, and related fields.
His tenure has prioritised operational effectiveness alongside personnel welfare, technological advancement, and institutional accountability under the banner of “Welfare for Enhanced Warfare.”
Personnel measures form a substantial part of the reported gains. Fifty-seven senior officers were promoted to the ranks of Air Vice Marshal and Air Commodore. In addition, 1,534 senior non-commissioned officers and 1,936 non-commissioned officers advanced in rank.
More than 550 personnel participated in international training and professional engagements, while over 6,000 received local training to build technical skills, specialised competencies, and leadership capacity.
Improvements in allowances, medical support, accommodation, and other infrastructure have been pursued, alongside the reactivation of welfare airlift services for personnel in frontline theatres.
Fleet modernisation has advanced in parallel. In September 2026 the service received five additional helicopters—three AW-109 Trekker Type B and two H125 models. Plans continue for the acquisition of 12 AH-1Z attack helicopters as well as other aircraft and unmanned aerial systems to bolster combat, airlift, training, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities.
Six L-39ZA aircraft are undergoing reactivation and upgrades in Slovakia and Nigeria, while periodic depot maintenance of a C-130 is ongoing in Portugal. These steps build on earlier capacity efforts and aim to address longstanding challenges of platform availability and sustainment in a high-tempo environment.
Infrastructure development has also been prioritised. The NAF approved 284 projects, of which 145 have been completed and 139 remain ongoing. These cover residential accommodation, academic and medical facilities, administrative and operational infrastructure, roads, electricity, water supply, and recreational amenities.
Parallel efforts seek to strengthen aviation safety and accountability through an Operational and Safety Audit Committee and enhancements to the Safety Management System. Structures for mitigating and responding to civilian harm—including standardised training and improved assessment and investigation capabilities—are under development. Plans for an Open-Source Intelligence Centre aim to improve situational awareness and operational planning by leveraging available information and emerging technologies.
Indigenous capacity initiatives include local production of Aircraft Release Device 863 impulse release cartridges, a 250-kilogramme bomb-loading trolley, and the development and ground testing of locally produced 57-millimetre rockets. Community-focused healthcare, educational, and other special projects continue in an effort to strengthen civil-military relations and public confidence.
The operational tempo reflected in the flying-hour and fuel figures is substantial. Averaging roughly 550–560 hours per month over the reported period, the activity level underscores sustained pressure across multiple theatres. Earlier in 2025 the NAF had already reported significant kinetic effects, including the neutralisation of more than 2,300 terrorists through hundreds of air interdiction missions.
The current reporting period extends that pattern under Aneke’s leadership while pairing kinetic output with investment in people, platforms, and processes.
Challenges remain. Nigeria’s security environment is complex, with banditry having evolved beyond cattle rustling into more organised territorial control, illegal taxation, and cross-border dimensions in some areas. National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu has publicly noted that military operations alone cannot end banditry and has emphasised the need for stronger intelligence-sharing, border management, community participation, and socioeconomic measures. Recent tragic incidents, including the October 2026 crash of an ATR 42 aircraft, have also prompted reinforced directives on flight safety oversight, aircraft airworthiness, and professional standards.
Still, the NAF’s public accounting presents a picture of deliberate effort to convert resources—fuel, flying hours, training, new platforms, and infrastructure—into measurable operational effects. “Through stronger joint operations, strategic partnerships, improved maintenance, professional development and responsible employment of airpower, the Service continues to pursue greater readiness and effectiveness in addressing Nigeria’s security challenges,” the statement concluded.
As Aneke marks his first year in office, the metrics of hours flown, sorties conducted, and fuel consumed serve as one measurable indicator of airpower contribution. The deeper test, as with any military transformation agenda, will be the sustained translation of these inputs into durable improvements in security outcomes for communities across the country. The Nigerian Air Force under its current leadership has signalled that the focus remains on making every mission count.
Samuel O. Sulaimon is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Naijapiz. He covers Global, News, Sports, Finance, Faiths, Education, Politics and Technology.
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