The Nigerian Air Force today operates just Five fighter jets, the lowest number in history. The shrinking of the Nigerian Air Force has paradoxically happened at a time Nigeria is battling its most existential threat since the Nigerian Civil war, and going by current plans it could be up to a decade before the AF strike fleet significantly grows again.

As of this December 12 2019 the NAF has seven F-7Ni fighter jet. This represents a %90 reduction compared to the air force's fleet in 1986. That year the NAF possesses a little more than 40 fighter jets made up of 21 MIG-21 Fishbed and 12 Sepecat Jaguar fighter jet. When you add the Alpha Jet trainers and L-39 Albatrose Nigeria had nearly 60 strike aircraft, forty of them fighter interceptors.

Today Nigeria's tiny fleet is a few shootdown away from becoming extinct. The Air Force has a total of seven or eight surviving F-7Ni fighters. Even assuming these jets have a 100% readiness rate (which is impossible, not even the USAF can achieve a 100% availability rate)), it is still near extinction. The Air Force has deployed three F-7ni fighters for operations in the northeast along side some Alpha jets. Four F-7Ni fighters are on permanent standby at the 64 Air Defence Group in Makurdi, leaving the Air Force with just ONE spare F-7Ni. Now this is in the best case scenario. I can assure you there are less fighters available.

While there is validation to the argument that because the expected three 4th generation F-17 fighters are more modern capable fighters than the 3rd generation F-7Ni fighters hence fewer aircrafts are needed, it is also very true that no aircraft, no matter how capable, can be in more than one place at a time. Three fighters does little to redress the capital asset inbalance of the NAF.

There are no plans now or in the foreseeable future to begin growing the fighter force. The service is expecting delivery of 12A-29 Super Tucano from the United States. But that is money wasted and only puts Nigeria at a severe disadvantage given the U.S tenacity to hold Nigeria hostage if it does not do its bidding by either freezing the assets in sanctions or withholding spares in the event of a diplomatic row. One would expect that the Nigerian government would have learnt a lesson or two from the failed Jaguar deal should have taught the air force a lesson or two in the dangers of acquiring top of the line aircrafts from the West.

Also the A-29 Super Tucano is not a specialized aircraft, lacking multi-role capability for fleet that costs over half a billion dollars. It lacks serious air to air capability. It is slower than the Alpha jet, which means it cannot dogfight. Unlike the Mi-35M helicopter gunships, it cannot provide tactical close air support for ground troops because of its thin skin. Not fast enough to bug out of a high threat area, out-run a missile and cannot too lightly protected to survive a hit. It cannot provide domestic air defense capability in every spectrum.

With less than half a squadron of high speed interceptors the NAF realistically can deploy around four or five at a time. As a general rule, just a third of military forces of any given type usually are available for combat, while the rest are are busy with training and maintenance. This is super scary given that the NAF fighter fleet handles domestic air defence duties. Only the United States rely solely on high performance jets for homeland air-defence, but the USAF have over 500 of F-16 and F-15 fighter/interceptors, not FIVE. Four or five fighters cannot effectively provide point defence for a single airbase much less the entire Nigerian airspace.

While the Air Force is expecting delivery of the JF-17 fighters/interceptors to address the gap in air defence, they will not be delivered until 2024 at best assuming all goes as planned. That leaves a minimum of at least five years with a diminished or non-existent capability to defend the homeland. That is far too long to go without an interim, near term solution to fill the gap and provide Nigerian warfighters with what they need most, more capable and a great number of arrows in the quiver.

In conclusion, we have decades of history where anytime a European nation or the United States builds up a large military base in a region , they instantly start colonizing or invading the neighboring countries. Case in point Libya. Today West Africa has more or less become a Franco-American military warehouse, with seven military bases in Niger,Cameroon,Chad, Mali, Central African Republic. This is what happens when you show the world you do not take the security of Nigerian lives seriously.

The Nigerian government is living in denial into believing the United States and France spent over $2 billion of American tax-payers money building these bases to help Nigeria in its fight against Boko Haram. Given the capability of these countries, if that were true Boko Haram would have been wiped out years ago. On the contrary ISIS has gained a foothold in Nigeria and now deploy advanced weapons systems not seen in the armies of many West African nations. The NAF is deluding itself if it believes it is ready to defend Nigerian airspace and critical infrastructure from enemy air attack with five fighter jets. They were not even aware that Chadian helicopter gunships carried out several airstrikes in Nigerian territory against Boko Haram in Borno state without prior notification of the Nigerian government. Nigeria needs a dedicated ground pounder, a dedicated air superiority platform and two times the number of wing-role fighters that can handle either mission, rather than building universities and factories and real estate.

With a GDP of $1.02 trillion (PPP), the 10th largest proven oil reserve on earth and a foreign reserve the size of the GDP Ghana, Nigeria is the wealthiest black nation in the history of the human race. A country that earmarks $1 billion to buy bullets alone each year can provide its warfighters with the tools they need to protect Nigeria's territorial integrity. Why it has simply refused to do the needful despite the security imperatives remains a mystery.

Jonathan started buying fighter jets, they said he wanted to wipe out the north

tuborme:
Jonathan started buying fighter jets, they said he wanted to wipe out the north

hehehe lol

I know people will come and blame either GEJ or PMB but won't blame the both.
So before u blame GEJ say him no buy fighter jets, I want to ask wetin PMB kon deh do weh him no kon buy as he became the Commander in chief after GEJ.
Where are the recovered loots?

And if u want to blame Buhari, u shu also ask ur self wat was Goodluck doing for 6years, was it to just loot the country dry?

I seriously doubt we have just 5 jet fighters in active service. Where are you getting your information from? Care to share a link?
In any case we need to start manufacturing our own fighter jets. I honestly don't think the problem is lack of know-how. Nigeria has some of the best educated people on the face of the earth.

Lies from the pit of hell..

Rosskiki:
I seriously doubt we have just 5 jet fighters in active service. Where are you getting your information from? Care to share a link?
In any case we need to start manufacturing our own fighter jets. I honestly don't think the problem is lack of know-how. Nigeria has some of the best educated people on the face of the earth.

We should just invest in drones no point trying to buy jets. We have people that can build it for us locally.

SSBBN:
The Nigerian Air Force today operates just Five fighter jets, the lowest number in history. The shrinking of the Nigerian Air Force has paradoxically happened at a time Nigeria is battling its most existential threat since the Nigerian Civil war, and going by current plans it could be up to a decade before the AF strike fleet significantly grows again.

As of this December 12 2019 the NAF has seven F-7Ni fighter jet. This represents a %90 reduction compared to the air force's fleet in 1986. That year the NAF possesses a little more than 40 fighter jets made up of 21 MIG-21 Fishbed and 12 Sepecat Jaguar fighter jet. When you add the Alpha Jet trainers and L-39 Albatrose Nigeria had nearly 60 strike aircraft, forty of them fighter interceptors.

Today Nigeria's tiny fleet is a few shootdown away from becoming extinct. The Air Force has a total of seven or eight surviving F-7Ni fighters. Even assuming these jets have a 100% readiness rate (which is impossible, not even the USAF can achieve a 100% availability rate)), it is still near extinction. The Air Force has deployed three F-7ni fighters for operations in the northeast along side some Alpha jets. Four F-7Ni fighters are on permanent standby at the 64 Air Defence Group in Makurdi, leaving the Air Force with just ONE spare F-7Ni. Now this is in the best case scenario. I can assure you there are less fighters available.

While there is validation to the argument that because the expected three 4th generation F-17 fighters are more modern capable fighters than the 3rd generation F-7Ni fighters hence fewer aircrafts are needed, it is also very true that no aircraft, no matter how capable, can be in more than one place at a time. Three fighters does little to redress the capital asset inbalance of the NAF.

There are no plans now or in the foreseeable future to begin growing the fighter force. The service is expecting delivery of 12A-29 Super Tucano from the United States. But that is money wasted and only puts Nigeria at a severe disadvantage given the U.S tenacity to hold Nigeria hostage if it does not do its bidding by either freezing the assets in sanctions or withholding spares in the event of a diplomatic row. One would expect that the Nigerian government would have learnt a lesson or two from the failed Jaguar deal should have taught the air force a lesson or two in the dangers of acquiring top of the line aircrafts from the West.

Also the A-29 Super Tucano is not a specialized aircraft, lacking multi-role capability for fleet that costs over half a billion dollars. It lacks serious air to air capability. It is slower than the Alpha jet, which means it cannot dogfight. Unlike the Mi-35M helicopter gunships, it cannot provide tactical close air support for ground troops because of its thin skin. Not fast enough to bug out of a high threat area, out-run a missile and cannot too lightly protected to survive a hit. It cannot provide domestic air defense capability in every spectrum.

With less than half a squadron of high speed interceptors the NAF realistically can deploy around four or five at a time. As a general rule, just a third of military forces of any given type usually are available for combat, while the rest are are busy with training and maintenance. This is super scary given that the NAF fighter fleet handles domestic air defence duties. Only the United States rely solely on high performance jets for homeland air-defence, but the USAF have over 500 of F-16 and F-15 fighter/interceptors, not FIVE. Four or five fighters cannot effectively provide point defence for a single airbase much less the entire Nigerian airspace.

While the Air Force is expecting delivery of the JF-17 fighters/interceptors to address the gap in air defence, they will not be delivered until 2024 at best assuming all goes as planned. That leaves a minimum of at least five years with a diminished or non-existent capability to defend the homeland. That is far too long to go without an interim, near term solution to fill the gap and provide Nigerian warfighters with what they need most, more capable and a great number of arrows in the quiver.

In conclusion, we have decades of history where anytime a European nation or the United States builds up a large military base in a region , they instantly start colonizing or invading the neighboring countries. Case in point Libya. Today West Africa has more or less become a Franco-American military warehouse, with seven military bases in Niger,Cameroon,Chad, Mali, Central African Republic. This is what happens when you show the world you do not take the security of Nigerian lives seriously.

The Nigerian government is living in denial into believing the United States and France spent over $2 billion of American tax-payers money building these bases to help Nigeria in its fight against Boko Haram. Given the capability of these countries, if that were true Boko Haram would have been wiped out years ago. On the contrary ISIS has gained a foothold in Nigeria and now deploy advanced weapons systems not seen in the armies of many West African nations. The NAF is deluding itself if it believes it is ready to defend Nigerian airspace and critical infrastructure from enemy air attack with five fighter jets. They were not even aware that Chadian helicopter gunships carried out several airstrikes in Nigerian territory against Boko Haram in Borno state without prior notification of the Nigerian government. Nigeria needs a dedicated ground pounder, a dedicated air superiority platform and two times the number of wing-role fighters that can handle either mission, rather than building universities and factories and real estate.

With a GDP of $1.02 trillion (PPP), the 10th largest proven oil reserve on earth and a foreign reserve the size of the GDP Ghana, Nigeria is the wealthiest black nation in the history of the human race. A country that earmarks $1 billion to buy bullets alone each year can provide its warfighters with the tools they need to protect Nigeria's territorial integrity. Why it has simply refused to do the needful despite the security imperatives remains a mystery.

Your wish. ?!
Yamree ipob delusion.

Rosskiki:
I seriously doubt we have just 5 jet fighters in active service. Where are you getting your information from? Care to share a link?
In any case we need to start manufacturing our own fighter jets. I honestly don't think the problem is lack of know-how. Nigeria has some of the best educated people on the face of the earth.

Do your own research please. Its not hard. We retired the MIG.22 fleet in 2005..for reason being its too antiquated. We then do a U-turn and aquire 15 Chinese clones of the Mig.22 as a stop gap measure they said. Three of these jets have been lost two crashes. We have just SEVEN LEFT.

tunjiajayi:


Your wish. ?!
Yamree ipob delusion.

whatever

You people don't know Buhari yet , in 1983 he inherited 20 sepecat jaguars , 18 MIGs , 28 Alpha jets , 30 L39 albatross , 18 C130s from Shagari and a Nigerian airways with 33 planes but within 18 months his incompetence had reduced the Nigeria airways fleet to 8 wobbly planes and our airforce a qtr its size ...Any Thing Muhammad Buhari touches must regress !!!! It's a fact

Rosskiki:
I seriously doubt we have just 5 jet fighters in active service. Where are you getting your information from? Care to share a link?
In any case we need to start manufacturing our own fighter jets. I honestly don't think the problem is lack of know-how. Nigeria has some of the best educated people on the face of the earth.

We have just 5 so keep quiet ..you should be suprised they are even upto five ..Most of you Buharist are just empty people who don't even know what's happening anywhere ..I doubt you can tell the difference between an Alfa jet and and the Chengdu F7 ...