The Nigeria Air Force (NAF) on Wednesday Winged two female combat pilots among 11 others during a ceremony at the NAF headquarters, Abuja.
Flying Officer Oluwabunmi Ijehu and Flying Officer Genevieve Nwaogwuwu became the first two female Regular Combatants to be Winged by the Nigerian Air Force.
The Chief of Air Staff (CAS) Air Marshal Saqidue Abubakar said apart from the 11 pilots being Winged on Wednesday, “We are expecting additional 10 pilots from International Aviation College in Illorin.”
Abubakar said four pilots would also graduate from South Africa after completion of training in February 2018, noting that there are additional 74 pilots training to qualify for awards of NAF wings.
He said 64 are training in Nigeria, while the remaining ten are training outside Nigeria, adding that the NAF trained 23 instructor pilots in the last two years while Seven are currently undergoing training abroad.
He said training efforts in Kaduna have been enhanced with the acquisition of 10 Supermushshak trainer aircrafts.
He said, in Kano all hands are on deck to increase the number of serviceable L-39ZA aircraft for basic fighter training.
He added that due to increase in serviceable A-Jets, the NAF commenced advanced fighter training locally in Nigeria.
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