A set of 628 Nigerian Air Force Personnel (NAF) yesterday graduated from the 2022/2023 Sundry Technical Military Programmes offered by the prestigious Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT).
Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar who was represented by the Air Officer Commanding Air Training Command, Air Vice Marshal Nnamdi Ananaba at the graduation ceremony stated that sundry technical programmes offered by AFIT had continued to enhance the quality of skilled technical manpower of the NAF.
He said AFIT has largely contributed to the NAF’s current status of being more self-reliant for its platforms and equipment maintenance.
In a statement by the director of public relations and information Air Cdre Edward Gabkwet, Abubakar stated further that aside the prestige and confidence gained from such self-reliance, the NAF had also built internal capacity for some levels of training, leading to the elimination of the cost of foreign trainings in areas it possesses internal capacities, thus conserving scarce foreign exchange.
The CAS noted that the graduation ceremony aligned with his command philosophy of “Transforming the NAF into an agile and resilient force that effectively meets the air power demands of national security in all operational environments”.
He added that AFIT being NAF’s foremost training institution was well positioned to facilitate one of the key enablers of his philosophy which is “deliberate training and mission-oriented force development”.
To the graduands, the CAS reminded them of the importance of enhancing their professional competencies, which was necessary to guarantee optimum aircraft serviceability and availability in furtherance of Nigeria’s national security imperatives.
Earlier, the Commandant of AFIT, Air Vice Marshal Sani Rabe, noted that the 628 graduands consisted of 37 officers, who have completed the Initial Officers’ Course, and 591 airmen/airwomen who have also completed various Basic as well as Intermediate and Advanced Upgrading courses.
He noted with delight that the Institute also trains foreign personnel from sister African countries as four officers from Ghana Air Force and three Airmen from Tanzanian Air Force were part of the graduating students.
