THE Air Force has urged its personnel to remain discipline and uphold military traditions.
Commandant, Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre (NAFRC) Oshodi Air Vice Marshal (AVM) Augustine Jekennu spokes at the Air Force regimental dinner at the headquarters, Logistics Command, Lagos.
Jekennu reminded the personnel that discipline is the bedrock of the military, urging them to uphold the spirit of comradeship with other security agencies.
He said: “The regimental dinner is an old tradition of military worldwide. Its essence is to foster camaraderie and cooperation among troops. It’s an opportunity for the hosting unit to relate with other agencies for better inter-service corporation.
“I use this opportunity to urge personnel to remain disciplined and to imbibe military traditions. Let the older officers teach younger ones on rules guiding regimental dinner. I noticed some flaws in the course of the dinner, such as people talking across table. Some of those lapses ought to be corrected and we can only achieve it by teaching younger ones.”
At the dinner were Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Logistics Command AVM Ibrahim Yahaya; President, Mess Committee (PMC) Air Commodore EJ Udenyi; Lagos Police Commissioner Fatai Owoseni and Commander, Operation AWATSE, Brig.-Gen. Julius Ogbobe; among others.
Owoseni described the dinner as wonderful, adding that it will help security agencies work better together.
Tag: Air Force
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Air Force advises personnel on discipline, synergy
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Air Force promises enhanced security for Oyo
During a working visit to Oyo State, the Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshall Sadique Baba Abubakar, visited Governor Abiola Ajimobi. He promised more deployment of airmen to the state for security purposes. Assistant Editor SEUN AKIOYE reports
The meeting between the Oyo State governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi and the Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar began and ended like a meeting between friends. They laughed, shookhands and made promises of mutual benefits.
It was Air Marshal Abubakar’s first visit to Oyo State where the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has a detachment; and as the governor would put it, the “first CAS to visit Oyo State, even as he called him the “son of the soil.”
The meeting, which held at the Presidential Lodge of the Oyo State government, had all the trappings of warmth and friendliness while the two men appreciated each other and expressed the willingness not only to work together for the development of the state, but also to find mutually acceptable recipes for it.
The Air Chief expressed great appreciation to the governor for the assistance the NAF unit has been receiving from the state government.
“I want to thank the government and the people of Oyo State for all the support we have been getting for our unit here in Ibadan.
“Ibadan, to me, is like a second home. I was here in 2008 at the University of Ibadan after my War College Programme in Abuja. At that time, I used to nurse the ambition to come and settle down fully in Ibadan after I leave the service because the town is peaceful and foodstuffs very cheap. I am still nursing that ambition,” he said.
This was good news to the governor and his several aides who were present at the meeting, as the CAS also promised to help Oyo State in the area of security by strengthening the detachment and deploying more airmen and women.
“We have a detachment here, we want to expand it, and we are looking at the secondary school here too. I have directed the commander that we must do everything possible to make sure that Oyo State is secured because without security, there could be no development.
“Since we have increased the number of people coming into the service, I want to assure you that once the first batch passes out in January, we are going to send more airmen and airwomen to Oyo State,” he further said.
While appreciating Air Marshal Abubakar for the visit, Governor Ajimobi restated that his administration will continue to accord security top priority for development.
“We regard security as the foundation for our development,” he said. The governor also promised to sign the title deeds to the land acquired by the NAF as soon as possible.
“Regarding the title deeds to your land, I see no problem in signing the documents at all. We will do that,” he assured.
But the Air Chief’s main focus was an inspection tour of the Air Force Comprehensive Secondary School in Lagelu, Ibadan. The school, which was established to cater for the academic well-being of children of the personnel, is fraught with some challenges which the CAS is determined to solve.
As the Air Chief moved from one section of the school to another, he would point out a fault on a building, suggest corrections in a structure or instruct that certain things should be put in place.
The school has challenges concerning electricity, water and classroom infrastructure. The CAS instructed the commander of the unit that everything possible should be done to ensure the challenges are surmounted.
“The kitchen looks nice and neat, but the issue of water is very important. Even if it means drilling another borehole, please just make sure you do it,” he said.
Highpoint of the inspection was a visit to the school’s dining hall where the CAS had lunch with the students. The CAS insisted on sitting with the children and eating the same food and using the same kind of plates they used. He addressed the students afterwards.
“I am here to find out some of the challenges you are experiencing with regard to electricity, water and so on. I want to assure you that we will address all these challenges so that you can study in an environment conducive to teaching and learning. But I want you to promise me that you will always put in your best in your academic work, do you promise that?” he asked. There was a resounding yes from the students.
Concerning the visit, the CAS said: “I have not been to Ibadan since I came on board as the Chief of Air Staff because of certain challenges we are trying to address in other parts of the country. But now that we have some breathing space, I decided to come here and see our units here in Ibadan, particularly the secondary school. The commandant and commander of the unit are doing well. We notice a number of challenges and I promised we are going to address them.”
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Soldiers, Air Force men in IDPs camps sex scandal
Policemen, Civilian JTF members, ministry official arrested, says IG
Soldiers, policemen and Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) men and others have been implicated in the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps sex scandal.
The policemen and CJTF suspects have been arrested. The Army and the Air Force are expected to surrender their implicated men, Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris said yesterday.
According to him, police investigators swung into action after the Human Rights Watch (HRW) report on alleged sexual abuses, exploitation, harassment, gender-based violence and professional misconduct on IDPs. The camps were opened following the Boko Haram insurgency in the Northeast.
Those indicted include two police officers, one prison warden, two civilian JTF members, a civilian from the Ministry of Agriculture, Maiduguri and three servicemen in the Army and the Air Force.
The HRW report alleged that there were 43 cases of abuses and misconduct.
Briefing senior officers at the Force Headquarters in Abuja yesterday, the IGP said: “About three or four weeks ago, I established a panel to investigate some allegations made by the Human Rights Watch.
“Investigation was conducted by the IGPs Monitoring Team at the Force Headquarters and they made contact with the Human Rights Watch in order for them to help us verify some of the allegations but, according to the response we got, they said they don’t reveal their sources of information.
“Despite that, our officers, with much tenacity and professionalism, were able to unearth some of the allegations and we have so far arrested some suspects. Some of these suspects are police officers, some are from sister agencies while some are civilians.”
Idris went on: “As I am talking to you, we have two police officers under investigation and they are in detention now. We have a prison warden, two civilian JTF, a civilian from the Ministry of Agriculture, Maiduguri who is now in our detention.
“In respect of our sister agency, we have written to them for them to avail us some of their personnel. These sister agencies, we are expecting three; obviously from the Army, and one from Airforce. Those are the people presently subjected to investigation.”
On efforts made to forestall future reoccurrence, the police chief said: “We know that it is an unfortunate incident that happened in most of these IDP camps and we are putting a lot of measures in place to address some of these issues.
“We have deployed a lot of women police officers in the camps in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe state and we are going into partnership with the United States (U.S.) to see how we can enhance the training of our personnel who we are going to attach to some of these IDPs.
He added: “As usual, those in the police and the military, as a procedure, we are going to dismiss them first before we take them to court but I am assuring that they will be taken to court to answer for this criminal act which they conducted.”
On Rivers rerun election; the IGP said the police would replicate what it did in Ondo State.
“Rivers is the next challenge we are having, but by the grace of God, just as we did in Ondo, we will do in Rivers. We have started the deployment of officers and I will be in Rivers on Thursday to address the men.”
On the preparation made for the Yuletide, Idris said: “Roadblocks have been cancelled and I cannot give a blanket order that police officers should not ask for licences because it is a way of checking crime.
“We will try to limit the deployment of our patrol vehicles on the roads. We should try to ease the movement of people on the road and we will continue to deploy X-Squad, especially in the southeastern part of the country where these complaints are coming from and I want CPs, AIGs to ensure smooth movement of travellers during the Yuletide,” he said.
On the uproar caused by some officers and men on special duty who are owed allowances, the IGP hinted that a permanent record would be created where names and account details of officers and men will be easily accessed.
He said: “Henceforth, CPs should be involved because up to yesterday, we still have policemen that are sending eight digits account number instead of ten digits. I think CPs should have interest in these to avoid going back and forth. I have set up a panel to come up with how we can address some of these issues of payment of allowances in accordance with due process.
“As a final solution, because we have a lot of elections ahead of us and this is just rerun, we are going to develop a permanent record for every police officer from name till the last so that when we have special duty, we will just check the list we have and then take the account numbers from our record.”
Idris urged his officers and men to drop their account details for easy processing. -
Air Force personnel contribute N7m for IDPs
Officers and men of the Nigerian Air Force have contributed the sum of N7million towards the welfare of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)
in the Northeast.
The cash donation and other relief materials were recently voluntarily contributed by the officers and handed over to the National President,
Nigerian Air Force Officers’ Wives Association (NAFOWA), Hjiya Hafsat Abubakar for onward delivery to the victims of Boko Haram insurgency.The Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Baba Abubakar had earlier encouraged Air Force commanders to make voluntary contributions to the
IDPs a core value of service to support the Federal Government to alleviate the plights of the IDPs.Receiving the items, Hajiya Hafsat Abubakar expressed deep appreciations to officers and men of the NAF for their genuine concern
towards the IDPs and for taking concrete step to put smiles on their faces.She promised that the Association would be fair and transparent in handling the donations, even as she stated that the items would be
transported immediately to Maiduguri to enable the association commence immediate distribution in Bama IDP Camp. -
Air Force continues offensive in Borno
The Air Force has continued its offensive in Borno, attacking several Boko Haram locations in Northern Borno, killing insurgents and providing cover for troops.
According to a de-classified video of the operation made available to The Nation by the Director of Public Relations and Information, Group Captain Ayodele Famuyiwa, the attacks were carried out at Kadara, Ngoshe and Kangarwa.
Active in the operations were Alpha Jets, many of which were weaponised by local technicians before being deployed.
According to Famuyiwa, on November 16, an Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft reported a gathering of insurgents under a tree at Kadari.
An Alpha Jet was called in to strafe the location, thus killing some insurgents.
Also, on November 18, fighter jets carried out coordinated air strikes against Boko Haram locations at Ngoshe. The strike, carried out by a 3-ship formation of Alpha Jets against five selected terrorist targets, was part of OPERATION RESCUE FINALE by the Army.
In Ngoshe, the Alpha jets hit their targets five times while a similar air strike was conducted on another terrorits location near Kangarwa, on November 19.
In Kangarwa, based on ISR aircraft request, an Alpha Jet was scrambled for air interdiction at a location close to Kangarwa. The area was strafed with cannon at least twice.
On the same day, the Air Force provided ISR cover for ground forces advancing from Ngoshe to Pulka. -
Army, Air Force in counter attack in Kangarwa
Following the death of Lt. Colonel Abu-Ali and six others in an attack on their Mallam Fatori, Borno State location, the Army and Air Force have begun a series of counter attacks aimed at further reducing Boko Haram strength.
Involved in the offensive are troops of the 119 Task Force Battalion, 8 Division deployed in Kangarwa, Kukawa Local Government, three fighter jets and one Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft.
Thirteen terrorists were killed, a soldier died while three others were injured.
The Army offensive began at about 4 pm and lasted about four hours, while the Air Force conducted operations from 5 pm till about 7:15 pm. Some insurgents fled with gun wounds, leaving their logistics and weapons.
Troops neutralised two Hilux vans and recovered another one. A Browning Machine Gun (BMG), Anti-Aircraft Gun (AAG), two General-Purpose Machine Guns (GPMG), Light Machine Gun (LMG), two Rocket Propelled Guns (RPG), seven tubes and bombs, five AK-47 rifles and 550 rounds of Anti-Aircraft Gun ammunition, were recovered.
Before the attack on Kangarwa, the Air Force conducted some day and night operations.
The operations were carried out at Kashimeri, Tumbu Gini, Chukugudu and other strongholds.
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Air Force carries out anti-terrorism operation at Lagos Airport
There was panic among passengers and workers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, following “invasion” of the departure terminal by gunmen in military camouflage.
The “invasion” was carried out by Special Ffrom the Air Force , who performed a simulation to ascertain Nigeria’s preparedness to foil terror attacks.
There was a commotion for several minutes as passengers scampered to safety, until an announcement was made that the exercise was by the Air Force.
The 45-minute simulation saw alleged “terrorists” take over the departure hall, shooting sporadically as they held passengers hostage.
The terrorists were portrayed to have taken over the departure hall, before the Special Forces took over.
An Alpha jet, C-130 and MI-35 aircraft, 50 AK47 rifles, 50 tavor guns, two rocket grenades and two assault rifles were used for the operation, which comprise three phases.
Snipers were deployed in strategic areas to take out the terrorists, who ‘killed’ five persons and ‘injured’ several.
The Special Forces entered the terminal building on an Air Force helicopter, registered as 565, dropping men from the roof of the terminal.
The Special Forces overpowered the terrorists and arrested them after a gun duel lasting some minutes.
The masked terrorists were led into a waiting military van and taken to an undisclosed location.
An old woman fell and was injured in the mouth, her male counterpart laid helpless on the floor. The woman’s daughter, who was wailing, threw her baby in the opposite direction to save her life.
The simulation was witnessed by Chief of Air Staff (CAS) Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar, Secretary to Lagos State Government, Tunji Bello, director of Air Force, Ministry of Defence (MOD) Mrs. Osai Osai, director of Air Traffic Services Air Vice Marshal Charles Otegbade, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Logistics Command Air Vice Marshal Sani Ahmed, Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command Rear Admiral Fergusson Bobai, General Manager of Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) Adesina Tiamiyu, and Commandant of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) Tajudeen Balogun, among others.
Speaking after the exercise, Air Marshal Abubakar said the the simulation was to evaluate the state of preparedness of the Special Forces.
He said although he observed some gaps, the team would evaluate such gaps during debriefing.
The Air chief said some of the men, who carried out the mock operation, were trained in Pakistan and others in Nigeria.
He added that security agencies were cooperative during the exercise.
Abubakar said: “The essence of this exercise is to evaluate the quick response force. The Mobile Air Defence Team (MADT) are currently at all airports across the country. They are highly trained and skilled personnel, whose duty is to protect our airports and make sure they are safe from terrorism and threats.
“Since terrorists do not give notice when they strike, this exercise was for us to evaluate ourselves and the synergy with other agencies. We also checked the time of response and monitored our effectiveness.
“What we want is to have a force that will be effective in the event of attack on our airport; you can have the training, you can have the skills, unless you are tested from time to time you won’t be able to know if there will be gaps.
“There are few gaps which we are going to address. But from what we have seen I am happy with the cooperation among agencies; Army, police, NSCDC and FAAN… We are happy we were able to plan, conduct and simulate an exercise together. A similar exercise would be conducted on all airports in Nigeria.”
However, despite the several announcements by airport authority and the banners placed at conspicuous locations, especially at entrances about the simulation, some passengers were still taken aback when the operation started.
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Boko Haram: Air Force to buy new jet
The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) is seeking to add an additional C295W military aircraft to its fleet as the battle against the Boko Haram Terrorists (BHT) reaches an advance stage.
The NAF has been crucial to the recent victories recorded by the military in the Northeast, through series of sustained aerial bombardment of camps and locations of Boko Haram militants.
The aircraft is to be purchased from Airbus Defence and Space Company Spain which had earlier in the year made proposals to the leadership of the NAF and submitted a sale proposal to the Air Force.
The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, recently played host to Spanish Ambassador to Nigeria, Alfonso Barnuevo Sebastian De Erice, who led two executives of Airbus Defence and Space Company (Spain) to Headquarters Nigerian Air Force (NAF) and held discussion on the company’s proposal to sell the C295W military aircraft to the NAF.
According to the NAF, based on its operational capabilities, the aircraft was considered suitable to meet some of its operational needs including Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) and airlift operations. The NAF has also recommended the aircraft for acquisition and provisions have been made for this in the 2017 budget proposal.
The CAS has also urged the visiting team to start looking into training areas for NAF pilots and technicians on the aircraft. This, the CAS said, is with a view to ensuring a smooth take-off for the operation of the aircraft in the event of its approval by the Federal Government.
According to Airbus Defence and Space Company, “The C95W aircraft has a robust airframe integrating an optimised cabin and redundant systems. The medium-sized aircraft can operate either as a single transport fleet or complement heavy airlifters and transport helicopters. The new wing design with winglets allows for the carriage of more payload to long distances and ensures the aircraft to achieve 4% fuel savings.”
It also has the capacity to carry up to 71 troops or up to 9t of cargo, it is also equipped with fully integrated tactical system (FITS), which coordinates the data from the mission sensors to enhance mission awareness and support decision making. The C295W can fly at a maximum cruise speed of 480km/h and can reach a maximum altitude of 25,000ft.
The new C95W is equipped with winglets and uprated engines to deliver improved performance than its predecessor as the under-wing stations of the aircraft can be fitted with CIRIT 70mm laser-guided missile, LUMTAS laser-guided, long-range anti-tank missile, and TEBER laser-guided bomb according to Airbus.
For the fight against Boko Haram the installed self-defence equipment and systems including cockpit armour, radar warning receiver (RWR), missile approach warning system (MAWS), laser warning system (LWS), and chaff / flares dispensers will become effective.
Countries which has recently purchased the C295W aircraft include: Bangladesh, India, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and Mali.
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Air Force: Another fight for girl-child
The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) played a major role in crippling the terrorist group Boko Haram by building schools designed for the girl-child. It has also launched a major campaign for a disadvantaged segment of the population, reports SEUN AKIOYE
Inside the headquarters of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Abuja, the vision statement of the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar was boldly written. The statement reads: “To re-position the NAF into a highly professional and disciplined force through capacity building initiatives for effective, efficient and timely employment of air power in response to Nigeria’s national security imperatives.”
On the surface, it may look like one of those well-crafted mission statements which usually end up as empty statements, but for the man who is referred to simply as “chief”, the vision is worth every weight.
One of the ways which the CAS is hoping to re-write history and fulfil his vision is through education not only of Air Force personnel-which is done through training- but also providing for the needs of the dependents of his men through provision of world-class educational facilities.
One of such is the Air Force Girls’ Comprehensive School located at the NAF Base Abuja. The NAF was not the original initiator of the school, but the Nigerian Air Force Officers Wives Association (NAFOWA) led by Hajia Hafsat Abubakar, wife of the CAS. But the NAF took over the construction of the school after NAFOWA ran out of resources to complete it in 2013.
In December 2015, the CAS directed that work should resume and in eight months, a world class infrastructure stood in the ruins of the abandoned structure. What was built was described by the Minister for Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan as a “21st century school.” The sparkling new school boasts a mini stadium, dining hall, hostel, tennis court, fully equipped classrooms, a library and a clinic. There is a standby generator to provide electricity while the science, art and agriculture laboratories and four other classrooms are equipped with interactive white boards which enables the students to experience the three ways of learning: hear, see, feel.
Educating the girl child
The CAS did not bite his lips when he enumerated the importance of educating the girl child and why the NAF view it as one of its cardinal focus.” Our experience in fighting insurgency in the Northeast indicates the exploitation of the girl-child by insurgents due to low literacy level. At present, birth rate statistics show that 65 percent of births are girls. It is documented by most state Ministries of Education that the enrolment of girls in secondary schools is below 45 percent.
“This statistic is further supported by the results of the West African Examination Council. For instance in 2011out of a total of 688,516 girls that sat for the examination, only 226,804 got 5 credits. Similarly in 2012, about 747,553 girls sat for the examination and only 310,822 were successful.”
The CAS said this NAF resolved to establish the school as “our modest contribution to Mr. President’s efforts at enhancing girl-child education in Nigeria.” With the new school, the NAF now has two secondary schools dedicated to girl-child education with one in Jos and Abuja respectively. He added that the school will educate the hearts and minds of the girls that would pass through its gates.
For the Minister of Education, the construction of the school was “humbling” also stressing that the ratio of girl child education to boys is 1:3 in some states. This is also reinforced by the extremism of Boko Haram and the risks associated with girl child education kept the female educational attainment perpetually low.
After commissioning the school and a tour of the facilities was conducted, Dr. Yemi Esan said: “ I came here with some uncertainties but I am impressed, this school is directed towards the underprivileged to curt out of school syndrome, we encourage other arms of government to follow suit, this is a 21st century school.”
Yemi- Esan would not be the only one to be impressed, the next day at the Air Force Base Kaduna where NAFOWA had rehabilitated a nursery school and added the NAFOWA Little Angels Primary School, the CAS was also left impressed.
“I am overwhelmed,” he said when he was called to make a remark after the school had been commissioned by Hajia Aisha Buhari, the wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, represented by the wife of Kaduna State Governor, Hajia Hadiza El-rufai.
“Four years ago, I brought my daughter to the crèche here, but I am sure she cannot recognize her school again because of the transformation,” he said. Like the girls school, the NAFOWA Primary school was built to world standard with ample playing room for the children, a fully equipped library and computer centre, spacious and conducive atmosphere for learning, white black boards, fully equipped home economics room and a crèche with modern facilities.
While the CAS may have focused on education for the dependents of personnel, the real driver of these projects is adding value to the society.” Adding value to the society is our core mandate, I strongly belief that adding value to the society is the best legacy we can bequeath to our children,” he said.
But there is also a greater vision: thinking ahead.
“We have recruited 2,400 personnel and with the increase, you must start thinking of infrastructure. Our actions are driven by the desire to add value to society and that is the right direction to go,” he said.
There are many worries that come with such projects, will the infrastructure not a pointer to an exorbitant school fees. Will the school be opened to children of civilians and how would the NAF maintain such a high standard facility, how much was expended into the project?
The CAS has answers for all. The school will follow the usual NAF fees schedule without adding anything on, the school will be opened to civilians, the NAF has maintenance structure put in place and the schools are of high standard so will stand the test of time and the schools are built using direct labour from the NAF, thereby cutting costs and enhancing the skills of Air Force engineers.
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How we’ll respond to airport terrorism, by Air Force
The Nigeria Air Force (NAF) yesterday conducted a counter-terrorism simulation exercise involving the insertion and extraction of Special Forces operating in conjunction with other security agencies to flush out terrorists and ensure normalcy at airports.
The exercise, code-named “Steel Dome “, meaning “Fortified Arena” was conducted by men of the Air Force Regiment – a special force operations team, comprising commandos and specially trained officers deployed in counter-terrorism.
The Air Force Regiment was founded after the breach of the Air Force Base in Maiduguri, Borno State, on December 2, 2013, by Boko Haram insurgents. Since then, the regiment has deployed Special Forces personnel throughout the country.
The counter-terrorism simulation, according to the Air Force Director of Public Information, Group Captain Ayodele Famuyiwa, provides answer to the question: “When you have a terrorist situation in your airport, what do you do?” Steel Dome shows what the NAF will do.
The exercise began with a briefing by Air Commodore Olusesan Idowu, director, NAF’s Regiment Headquarters in a small room at the northern corner of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
The briefing highlighted objectives of the exercise, which include: “Practice individual/group skills in the planning, coordination and execution of counter-terrorist operations; Understand requirements and challenges involved in the coordination and conduct of counter-terrorism in concert with other security agencies.”
Others are: “Derive lessons to guide the Directorate of Regiment in drawing up a doctrine and planning guide for the conduct of airport counter-terrorism; and Reaffirm NAF’s commitment to support civil authority in times of national emergencies.”
About 40 Special Forces men were involved in the rescue operations of passengers.
Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar said the exercise would be continuous, adding that lapses would be rectified.
“I am happy we have been able to test the plans we have for this airport and whatever gaps there are we will go back and fix it. The evaluators are here to see if the plan can be effective. What we want is to have a force that will be effective in the event of attack on our airport; you can have the training, you can have the skills, unless you are tested from time to time you won’t be able to know if there will be gaps,” he said.
Abubakar said he would test the cooperation of other agencies to know where there would be problems and how to fix it.
“The essence is to ensure there are no gaps, and we need to have the cooperation of other agencies; coordination with other agencies must be evaluated from time to time to know if there will be problems in a real situation. What I have seen this morning, I am satisfied, I want to appreciate the airport authority and other agencies, the Army and the Navy are here with us and other agencies.”
He, however, denied that NAF is anticipating an attack on one of the nation’s busiest airports, insisting the exercise is a test.
’’We are not anticipating anything; as I said this is just an exercise, it is important that you evaluate your plans from time to time, this is not because we are anticipating anything. We have at least an idea of what is likely to happen should there be this kind of situation, we pray that we don’t have this kind of situation but we must be prepared to also be there should it happen.
“We will go beyond what we are doing here. We will look for other airports. This is just within the terminal building; assuming we have terrorists coming from the other end of the runway, can we deploy our aircraft to be with them even before they get to the terminal building?
“We are starting with Nnamdi Azikiwe. We are going to Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kano, and we have enough Special Forces trained to undertake this kind of operation. We have deployment in most of our airports, they are in different parts of the country and can be mobilised,” he said.