The Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hasan Bala Abubakar, affirmed that his command philosophy is essential towards building the capabilities of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) for future air warfare.
Abubakar added that his command philosophy was to transform NAF into an agile and resilient force that would effectively meet the airpower demands of national security in all operational environments.
He asserted this while delivering a paper titled, “The Future of Air Warfare in the Nigerian Air Force – My Command Philosophy,” at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji on Thursday in Kaduna State.
He said this in a statement by the Director of Public Relations and Information, NAF, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, on Thursday in Abuja.
Abubakar however, said any armed forces that failed to prepare for the probable future would always be reactive rather than proactive in its approach to national security issues.
The CAS said the nature of future air warfare would be determined by a number of factors, including internal and external threats to national security, the national economic fortune, and the air power capabilities of the Service.
He said the NAF under his command would acquire Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for real time Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance and precision strikes and replace its medium and heavy airlift capabilities for more effective and rapid mobility.
He added that efforts were in the final stages to conduct the first-ever capabilities-based assessment of the NAF, which would enhance the operational effectiveness of the Service in current and future air warfare.
Abubakar also said human capacity development in the NAF under his watch, was consciously tailored towards achieving assigned tasks.
He said about 1,476 personnel were currently enrolled in several training programmes, both domestically and internationally with a view to addressing present and future air combat needs of the NAF.
