Why we set up helicopter flying training school – Chief of Air Staff
The inadequacy of aircrew and insecurity in the air force bases were identified as major challenges to the air force. How have you been able address these problems? Having identified the problem of inadequate aircrew, we came up with certain programs to be able to ameliorate the situation and right now, we decided to have […]
The inadequacy of aircrew and insecurity in the air force bases were identified as major challenges to the air force. How have you been able address these problems?
Having identified the problem of inadequate aircrew, we came up with certain programs to be able to ameliorate the situation and right now, we decided to have our trainings in two batches; one within the country and the second one abroad. We have sought a number of slots from abroad for training of not only our aircrew, but other personnel. We have also decided to carry out aggressive reforms of our flying training institutions as well as other institutions. That is why we set up the international helicopter flying training school, Enugu. We hope to commence operations there before the end of this year. So, we are carrying out this issue of looking into the adequacy of aircrew in two phases including one in Nigeria which led to the rehabilitation of our flying schools. We have paid for the vacancies we got for our officers in foreign institutions and the pilots are leaving the country in phases for various institutions to attend flying trainings.
On the security of bases, I can assure you, when you get into our base, you will be impressed with the security measures taken there. We have tightened security by introducing a number of checks including electronic measures such as monitoring gadgets like the Closed Circuit Television Cameras.
Are there improvements in the serviceability of NAFs aircraft?
Thank very much for the question. On most of our aircraft that are operational, we have more than sixty percent serviceability rate or more. There are some that are below thirty per cent mainly because of lack of spare parts but we are to receive some of the spares from abroad which often take time to arrive. Sometimes, we even need end-user certificates to be able to get such spares. So, in most of our platforms, we have over sixty per cent serviceability rate at the moment but as I said, some need to improve seriously because of lack of spare parts.
Recently, you carried out a flying training exercise in Kano and Ilorin in which one of your aircraft crashed which you said investigation is being conducted. Do you have enough skilled personnel to operate your aircraft?
You see, the more you fly, the more you get into flying activities and the more it is to have unexpected outcomes or the more you get involved in one incident or the other. It is just like driving. If you decide not to drive and stay at home, nobody will smash your car. That is not saying that we do not take care of the serviceability of our machines, the training of our crew and of course, safety which is the most important thing. As you know, the air force has an institute for safety where we train and re-train our aircrew and other supporting personnel about safety. So, the point I am trying make is that the more hours you fly, the likelihood that you will have one problem or the other. But if you look at the number of hours that we flew, particularly during the elections exercise, they were enormous and there were chances to have some incidents just like what happened on Monday, the eve of the governorship and house of assembly elections when we had mechanical problems with the engine of one of the aircraft. We had to force land near the landing pad in Yenagoa, Bayelsa state. This can’t happen if the intensity of the operation is less.
What informed the training in Kano and do you carry out such exercises in the southern parts of the country?
The reason why we undertake training exercises outside the operational base of our aircraft is to check the operational readiness of the aircraft and of course of the aircrew. Our aircrew should be able to fly anywhere, not only within the country. So, the first thing we do is to check the operational readiness of the unit (aircraft) to ascertain that it can move from any other base within the country which we have been able to achieve by flying in Kano and also moving to Ilorin to continue the exercise. The one in Kano exercised units within the north and in Ilorin; the exercise was for the units located in the southern parts of the country. We flew even across our borders to tell our neighbors that we are around and we know what is happening around our borders as well as to show them that we are ready to defend our airspace. These are some of the exercises that we can tell you among those we carry out.
On the cause of the accident in Kano, we have had preliminary investigation and a full scale investigation is going on. I believe the report should be in the NAF headquarters any moment from now because from what I am told, the investigation has been concluded and the report will be submitted to us very soon and as soon as it is submitted, we will let you know the exact cause of the crash. But we believe the aircraft model involved in the crash is good and they are still flying. As far as I am concerned, the aircraft is good because there are more than four hundred F-7 jets flying across the world including the country of manufacture, China as well as Pakistan. Even here in Africa, some countries had it before us like Botswana and they are still flying the aircraft. F-7 is very reliable; the quality of our aircraft is even more advanced than what the Chinese are flying.
Our aircraft has modern equipments and we have little or no problems with it as operational aircraft.
How did you tackle the challenge of payment of operation allowance of pilots and other personnel? Again, what informed your decision to set up airlift command in Yenagoa?
Well before I answer the questions, let’s clarify one area you raised on why we are training in the north and not in the south? I think you didn’t get our programs properly. Actually, we train in the southern part of the country. In fact, our helicopter international school is going to be based in Enugu and we train every day in the south. As I am talking now, the Mi-35 helicopters are training in Port Harcourt daily within the coastal areas of the country. The Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA), ATR-42 is in the air most of the times where people will not see them, in the maritime environment. They fly more than eight hours covering the Exclusive Economic Zone and most of their flights are training exercises. So, we do train in the south, especially during the harmattam season when most of our aircraft positions in the north will be moved to Enugu and Port Harcourt and we relocate there because of the dusty sand that makes it difficult for us to operate. But there are some challenges in the south. For instance, our light aircraft, the primary trainer, because of its single engine, needs flight areas where it can force land in case the pilot loses engine. Forested areas like those in the south become a little bit difficult to find a space to bring down the aircraft. So it’s a challenge but we still deploy aircraft to the south.
Let me come back to the question on support allowance. Well, I thank our predecessors for doing a very good job on welfare improvement. On support allowance to NAF personnel, we have carried out a survey and came up with recommendations on the allowances which were approved and sent to the National Salaries and Wages Commission for approval. While we were doing so, we decided to pay the ration allowances for those of us who are not benefiting from the other allowances pending the time the Commission approves the recommendations.
The reason for deactivating the military airlift command now, NAF Mobility command, is due to dwindling fortunes in the 1990s. Due to military incursion into governance, it became difficult to support the various services and the NAF’s platforms and because of that, it was complex to manage them. We had four commands without aircraft. So we decided to merge the assets of the military airlift command with the Tactical Air Command in Makurdi. Thank God, now that we are in a democratic period and part of what we gained was the increase in units, we decided to reactivate that command and locate it in Yenagoa because of the strategic importance of that part of the country in terms of economic gains. The place needs military presence. Unfortunately, there was no military presence before we got there. The NAF is the first to establish a military outfit in Yenagoa perhaps, to improve security. It is important that the new runway in Yenagoa will soon be established and we will be happy to partake in the establishment work. We need to discharge our constitutional responsibility to secure the airspace and give support to our surface forces by providing the capability to move those services at anytime.
Are you ready to deploy more of your planes and troops to quell civil disturbances and to what extent did the NAF participate in the distribution of INEC materials?
We have already deployed air assets for internal security operations in the Niger Delta because of the situation there. The Mi-35 helicopter is visible and very active in restraining the activities of the militants. Recently, we had to deploy aircraft to Maiduguri and Jos as well as Kaduna during the post election crisis. Our men were also deployed to those places to carry out operations alongside other security agencies.
At a time we deployed all our aircraft for the distribution of election materials. We deployed a minimum of five fixed wing aircraft at one time and about eight helicopters to support INEC throughout the election period. The fixed wing planes included C-130, G222, ATR-42 and Donier 228 while the helicopters included Mi-35, Mi-24 and the Aguster 109.