We all thought the 1980s was the Golden Age of the NAF. It had an active duty force of : 7,000.

Makurdi was the home to the Nigerian Air Force's MiG 21 and SEPECAT Jaguar aircraft squadrons. The NAF operated a fleet of 18 Sepecat Jaguar fighter jets and 22 MiG-21 Fishbeds.

This fleet was augmented by 24 Aero L-39 Albatros armed jet trainers and a similar number of Alpha jets. This was by far the largest and most modern AF in Sub Saharan Africa excluding the South African Air Force. Apparently the West concluded the NAF was getting too powerfull
..for comfort. The NAF tried to obtain 27 more Aero L-39s but the IMF vetoed the purchase. Nigeria tried to aquire more A-jet but was stone walled. Nigeria tried to aquire smart munitions with standoff capability to maximize the deep strike capability of the Jaguars. DENIED.
When Nigeria requested for in flight refuelling tankers. Paris prevailed on BAE Systems to deny such request, stating Nigeria was seeking deep strike and aerial refuelling capabilities because it was planning an invasion of its neighbours.
So NAF spends millions aquiring advanced fighter jets but have yo make do with dumb free-fall iron bombs. How evil is that? This period
marked a steep decline in NAF capability that lasted decades. A shell of its former self......until recently. Today we are witnessing a resurgent, much more powerful and sophisticated Air Force. Reclaiming its lost position as the most capable in Sub Saharan Africa.
This period we are today is indeed the Golden Age of the Nigerian Air Force. Its the largest in SSA in terms of personnel with an active duty force of 18,000.

Fixed wing fighters:

JF-17 Thunder Multirole fighter and Chengdu F-7Ni Airguard interceptor.
Light attack aircraft. Dassault Donnier Alpha jets and Aero L-39ZA
Unmanned aerial vehicles:

CH-3A/B Rainbow armed attack drone. Wing Loong II attack drone. CH-4 attack drone
Rotary Wing :

Mi-35M helicopter gunship. MI-24, Eurocopter Super Puma, Bell 412, AW109 power attack helicopter, Mi-17Sh/Mi-17E
ISR/ISTAR/ELINT :

ATR-42 Maritime Patrol Plane.

King Air 350i ISR aircraft.

Diamond Sensor aircaft.

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