Major shake up in Air Force, 41 senior officers redeployed

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has announced a major shake up in its hierachy of  leadership with the redeployment of 41 Senior Officers, mostly of the ranks of Air Commodores and Air Vice Marshals.

The shake up affected 19 Air Vice Marshals, 14 Air Commodores, four Group Captains, two Wing Commanders, and two Squadron Leaders.

According to the Director of Public Relations and Information of the NAF, Air Vice Marshal Olatokunbo Adesanya, the redeployment is with effect from January 2, 2018.

In a statement issued in Abuja, AVM Adesanya described the redeployment as routine and in line with the recent promotions in the Service.

He said the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, had also directed that newly appointed Commanders of NAF field units and other commanders should attend a workshop slated for Abuja on January 3, 2018 as their new postings go with lots of responbilities

AVM Adesanya said: “The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has released the postings and redeployment of a total of 41 senior officers comprising 19 Air Vice Marshals (AVMs), 14 Air Commodores (Air Cdre), 4 Group Captains (Gp Capt), 2 Wing Commanders (Wg Cdr) and 2 Squadron Leaders (Sqn Ldr). The postings and redeployment came as a result of the recent promotion of senior NAF officers to the next higher ranks. Though a routine exercise, the posting exercise is aimed at ensuring that the NAF is effectively manned for operational efficiency and effectiveness.

“Prominent among those affected by the new postings are: AVM Lawal Alao who is now the Commandant of the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji and AVM Olusoji Awomodu, who has been appointed as the Director Manning & Establishments at the Defence Headquarters. In addition, AVM Bello Garba has been redeployed as the Chief of Logistics at Headquarters NAF (HQ NAF) and AVM Mahmoud Ahmed has taken over as Chief of Administration, also at HQ NAF.

“Other appointments include those of AVM Mohammed Suleiman as the Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO) at Headquarters Tactical Air Command, Makurdi, AVM Samuel Babalola as the Director of Personnel Management at HQ NAF, AVM Tunde Awoyoola as Deputy Chief of Defence Space Agency and AVM Haruna Mohammed as Commandant Air Traffic Services Training Centre, Likewise, AVM Sambo Usman has been appointed as Group Managing Director of NAF Holding Company, AVM Remigus Ekeh appointed as the Director of Evaluation at HQ NAF while AVM Paul Dimfwina becomes the Coordinator Project Implementation and Monitoring Committee at HQ NAF. Furthermore, AVM Ibukun Ojeyemi is now the SASO at Headquarters Air Training Command, Kaduna while AVM Frank Oparah has been appointed as Director of Research at Defence Headquarters.

“​Also appointed are AVM Peter Uzezi as Director Earth Observation at Defence Space Agency, AVM Olusegun Philips as Director of Museum and Archives at HQ NAF, AVM Chinwendu Onyike as Director of Technical Services at Defence Intelligence Agency and AVM Emmanuel Wonah as SASO, Headquarters Logistics Command, Ikeja. Similarly, AVM Abubakar Liman has been appointed as SASO, Headquarters Special Operations Command, Bauchi, AVM Mahmud Madi as Director of Launch Services and Space Operations at Defence Space Agency and Air Cdre Noah Oyibo as SASO, Headquarters Ground Training Command, Enugu. Meanwhile, Air Cdre Cosmas Ozouggwu is to take over as Director of Production at HQ NAF while Air Cdre David Aluku becomes the Director of Civil Military Relations also at HQ NAF.

“​The new posting also brought about changes at the Unit level. Some of the new Commanders and Commandants are Air Cdre Edward Adedokun, who is appointed as Commandant NAF Institute of Safety, Kaduna and Air Cdre Paul Masiyer, appointed as Commandant Military Training Centre, Kaduna. In addition, Air Cdre Moses Onilede is to take over as Commander 631 Aircraft Maintenance Depot, Ikeja while Air Cdre Elijah Ebiowe is appointed as Commander 115 Special Operations Group, Port Harcourt.

“​The newly posted and redeployed senior officers are expected to take over their new offices not later than 2 January 2018. Furthermore, the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, has directed the newly appointed commanders of NAF field units to attend a workshop being organized at HQ NAF Abuja on 3 January 2018 for commanders. Command appointments in the NAF come with a lot of responsibilities, including the management of human and material resources. The workshop is therefore aimed at equipping/reminding commanders of their responsibilities and HQ NAF expectations in the conduct of their activities”.

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