The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) is the air branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is the youngest branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces, established four years after the nation became independent.
The Nigerian Air Force was formally established on 18 April 1964 with the passage of the Air Force Act 1964. The Act stated that the "Nigerian Air Force shall be charged with the defense of the Federal Republic by air, and to give effect thereto, the personnel shall be trained in such duties as in the air as well as on the ground."
Early Years and Development
The NAF was formed with technical assistance from West Germany (now Federal Republic of Germany). The air force started life as a transport unit with the first air crew trained with the Ethiopian Air Force. The head of the German Air Force Assistance Group (GAFAG) was Colonel Gerhard Kahtz, and he became the first commander of the NAF.
The NAF did not acquire combat capability until several Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 aircraft were presented by the Soviet Union in support of Nigeria's war effort during the Nigerian Civil War. On 13 August 1967, following several damaging attacks by Biafran aircraft, the USSR started delivering the first MiG-17s from Egypt to Kano IAP, simultaneously sending a large shipment aboard a Polish merchant ship. Initially two MiG-15UTI (NAF601 and NAF 602), and eight MiG-17 (NAF603 to NAF610) were supplied to Nigeria.
Expansion and Modernization
During the 1970s, Nigeria bought Lockheed C-130 Hercules from the United States. Six were acquired at a total cost of $45 million. 25 Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21MFs and six MiG-21UM were delivered in 1975 upon the advent of the Murtala-Obasanjo administration that replaced the regime of General Yakubu Gowon. Jimi Peters wrote: "...the 1975-1980 NAF development plan restructured NAF formations" into group (air force) level units that reported to air force headquarters.
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From 1984, 18 SEPECAT Jaguar fighters (13 Jaguar SNs and 5 Jaguar BNs) were delivered and operated from Makurdi. They retired in 1991. Nigeria purchased 24 Aero L-39 Albatros armed jet trainers in 1986-87, having retired its fleet of L-29 that were donated to the Republic of Ghana Air Force at the inception of the West African Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) operations in Liberia.
Nigerian Air Force SEPECAT Jaguar
In 2005, under the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo, the Nigerian Parliament appropriated US$251 million to purchase 15 Chengdu F-7 fighter aircraft from China. The deal included 12 F-7NI (NI-Nigeria) single-seat fighter variant, and 3 FT-7NI dual-seat trainer aircraft. The $251 million package included $220 million for 15 aircraft, plus $32 million for armaments: live PL-9C AAM, training PL-9 rounds, unguided rockets, and 250/500 kg bombs.
The pioneer NAF pilots on the aircraft trained in China in 2008, while delivery of the aircraft began in 2009. Nigeria had previously considered a $160 million deal to refurbish its fleet of MiG-21s by Aerostar/Elbit Systems, IAI, and RSK MiG. However, it was considered more cost-effective to opt for acquiring the F-7s which were brand new. Nigeria also initiated modification of its variant of the F7, including installing some western equipment and avionics and hence its official designation as "F7-Ni" to reflect that its variant differs in some respects from a typical Chinese F-7. With this acquisition, the fleet of MiG 21s was subsequently retired.
In March 2014, the Nigerian Government approached Pakistan for the purchase of joint Chinese-Pakistani made CAC/PAC JF-17 "Thunder" multi-role fighter aircraft. In December 2015, the Government of President Muhammadu Buhari presented a budget to the National Assembly that included N5bn for three JF-17 aircraft. On 28 March 2018, 'The Diplomat' reported Pakistan as confirming the sale of three JF-17s to Nigeria. In March 2020, NAF Chief of Air Staff announced the delivery schedule of three JF-17 Thunder to be affected in November 2020.
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The NAF designed and built its first indigenous UAV, the "Gulma," which was unveiled by former president Goodluck Jonathan in Kaduna, who said that the "Gulma" would be useful in aerial imaging/mapping, telecommunications, and weather monitoring.
Active Nigerian Air Force Aircraft (2025)
There are a total of 24 Active Nigerian Air Force Aircraft entries in the Military Factory. Entries are listed below in alphanumeric order (1-to-Z). Flag images indicative of country of origin and not necessarily the primary operator.
Nigerian Air Force 2025 | All Fleet
Organizational Structure
The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) is the principal or lead adviser to the President and also the Minister of Defense and the Chief of Defense Staff, on air-related defense matters. The Nigerian Air Force headquarters is responsible for establishing long and short-term mission objectives and articulating policies, carrying out plans and procedures for the attainment of peace and stability. Also, HQ Nigerian Air Force liaises with the Nigerian Army and Nigerian Navy on joint operational policies and plans.
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The headquarters Nigerian Air Force consists of the office of the Chief of the Air Staff and 8 staff or branches namely; Policy and Plans Branch, Operations Branch, Air Engineering Branch, Logistics Branch, Administration Branch, Accounts and Budget Branch, Inspections Branch and Air Secretary Branch respectively. two new training commands derived from the now defunct Kaduna-based Training Command - the Air Training Command (ATC) with its HQ at Kaduna and the Ground Training Command (GTC) with its HQ at Enugu; and the Lagos-based Logistics Command.
Every command has several subordinate groups, each of which has at least one wing - and each wing includes one or more squadrons. Nigerian Air Force Mobility Command, headquartered at Yenagoa, was established in 2011. It has five other commands located in Lagos, Ilorin, Calabar, Warri and Abuja.
The Nigerian Air Force also maintains and is the primary custodian of the air fleet in which the president flies on, as well as other state and foreign dignitaries. According to the government, there are 10 aircraft in the fleet. They include two each of AgustaWestland AW189, and Falcon 7X, as well as one each of Bombardier Challenger 605, Boeing Business Jet, Falcon 900, Hawker 4000, Gulfstream G500, and Gulfstream G550. In 2024, an Airbus was acquired for presidential travel.
Recent Operations and Incidents
On 2 January 2019, one Mi-35M attack helicopter from the Nigerian Air Force helicopter squadron crashed in Damasak, Borno State while providing close-air support for troops of the 145 Battalion combating Boko Haram insurgents, killing all on board.
On 25 January 2015, a photo appeared online at Beegeagle's Blog, appearing to show a CASC Rainbow CH-3 UCAV which crashed upside down near Dumge village in the Mafa District of Borno State. The two anti-tank missiles on the CH-3's wings appear to be intact. Borno is the area where much of the Boko Haram violence, including the massacre of 2,000 civilians, occurred in 2015. The Nigerian military is fighting to hold onto the city of Maiduguri against a Boko Haram onslaught, so it appears likely that the CH-3 in question was flying reconnaissance and fire support missions for the military when it crashed.
On 28 September 2018, a fatal air collision involving two F-7 aircraft occurred during a formation flying exercise involving an Aeritalia G.222 and three Alpha Jets as they practiced flight maneuvers for the 58th Independence Day celebrations in the capital, Abuja. As the F-7 jets turned to the formation flying, their wings clipped each other's side. Both planes lost stability due to the collision and it resulted to the spiral loss of both jets and they both crashed at the Katampe district of Abuja. Three pilots ejected out of the crippled jets. The two pilots who were on the F-7Ni ejected and landed with minor G-force injuries, and the third pilot on the F-7 ejected and sustained head injuries due to the problems from the parachute as it deployed. The pilot died on the way to the hospital as emergency services rushed to the scene of the crash.
On 31 March 2021, an Alpha Jet crashed near Borno State in North Eastern Nigeria, after it was conducting an air interdiction on Boko Haram. On 18 July 2021, while returning from an air interdiction mission in the North Western region of Nigeria along the Kaduna-Zamfara state boundaries, an Alpha Jet piloted by Flight Lieutenant Abayomi Dairo was shot down by "armed bandits" in Zamfara State. Flight Lieutenant Dairo successfully ejected from the plane, evaded capture and made his way to a Nigerian Armed Forces base in the area with minor injuries.
On 14 July 2023, while on a routine training exercise in Markudi, Benue State, a Chengdu FT-7 crashed at 4:15 pm WAT local time. On 14 August 2023, a NAF MI-171 Helicopter, which was involved in on "casualty evacuation mission", encountered a crash at approximately 1:00 pm. The helicopter's initial point of departure was Zungeru Primary School, with its destination set for Kaduna state. However, it was later determined that the helicopter had suffered a crash in the proximity of Chukuba Village, situated within the administrative jurisdiction of the Shiroro Local Government Area in Niger State.
Map of Nigeria
Controversies
The Nigerian military has made several mistakes while conducting air strikes in recent times. One particularly fatal error happened in December 2023, when the Nigerian forces accidentally hit a village with an armed UAV in northwestern Nigeria killing 85 civilians celebrating a Muslim festival. In 2024, a Christmas Day airstrike in Sokoto state killed at least 10 people and injured many others. The military targeted the terror group Lakurawa in the villages of Gidan Sama and Rumtuwa, but civilians were caught in the crossfire.
