The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has reshuffled its senior leadership, naming new Air Officers Commanding for five of its operational commands and a new commander for the Nigerian Air Defence Corps. The postings were approved by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke, on 7 November 2026, and affected officers must complete handovers by 13 November.
The changes were announced in a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday, 8 November, by the NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, and carried by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Daily Post, Punch and other Nigerian outlets. According to the statement, the postings cover Headquarters NAF, the operational commands, Defence Headquarters, training institutions and other defence establishments. The NAF said the aim is to strengthen command effectiveness, build institutional capacity and sustain operational readiness.
New operational commanders
At operational command level, the statement lists the following Air Officers Commanding (AOC):
- Tactical Air Command: AVM NI Ilo
- Mobility Command: AVM BR Mamman
- Logistics Command: AVM OS Ogunsina
- Special Operations Command: AVM MN Onyebashi
- Ground Training Command: AVM FCS Nwakara
AVM JI Ukeh was appointed Commander of the Nigerian Air Defence Corps (NADC), and AVM GI Jibia becomes Deputy Force Commander of Operation HADIN KAI, the joint military operation in the North East. New chiefs of staff were also named for six commands: AVM NB Folaji (Tactical Air Command), AVM OA Abu (Mobility Command), AVM I Subi (Special Operations Command), AVM F Ekpah (Ground Training Command), AVM ES Odekina (Logistics Command) and AVM M Umar (Air Training Command).
Headquarters and staff appointments
At Headquarters NAF, AVM NN Ananaba becomes Chief of Operations, AVM PN Amadi Chief of Air Intelligence, AVM EE Efiom Chief of Training, AVM AJ Laoye Chief of Aircraft Engineering and AVM AK Ademuwagun Chief of Transformation and Innovation. AVM MA Sulaiman was named Chief of Communications and Information Systems, and AVM S Peters Coordinator of the Project Implementation Team. Directorate-level postings include AVM AK Bello (Armament), AVM YA Katabiya (Logistics), AVM GA Mbaka (Aircraft Engineering), AVM AL Dakwat (Research and Development) and AVM SO Eyekosi (Plans). AVM NS Okoro becomes Director-General of the Air Force Research and Development Institute (AFRDI), and AVM CE Akubue Managing Director of Aircraft Engineering and Technical Services Limited (AETSL).
Joint, intelligence and space posts
Several air vice marshals move to joint and national posts. AVM UK Abdullahi becomes Director of Defence Operations at Defence Headquarters, AVM I Sani Deputy Chief of Defence Intelligence and AVM ZA Usman Director of Cyber Operations. AVM EOE Ebiowe moves to the Office of the National Security Adviser as Deputy Coordinator, National Intelligence. In the space sector, AVM AA Suleh becomes Deputy Chief of the Defence Space Administration and AVM OT Salami Deputy Chief of the Defence Space Command Centre.
In military education, AVM PB Philips was appointed Commandant of the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, AVM AO Akinbunwa Commandant of the Air Force War College, AVM OC Ubadike Commandant of the Air Force Institute of Technology and AVM M Yusuf Deputy Commandant of the Nigerian Defence Academy.
Why it matters
The operational commands named in the statement control the NAF’s combat, airlift, special operations, logistics and training forces. The reshuffle comes as the service absorbs new equipment: the NAF is introducing Leonardo M-346FA light attack jets, is pursuing AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters, and has published a wish list of up to 67 more aircraft. The statement did not link any individual posting to these programmes, and it did not say which officers the new commanders replace.
According to the statement, Air Marshal Aneke said he was confident the officers’ experience would help the service “deliver decisive airpower effects in support of joint operations and national security objectives”.
Sources
- News Agency of Nigeria (NAN): “NAF approves strategic leadership posting”, 8 November 2026 (quoting the NAF statement).
- Daily Post Nigeria: “NAF approves new posting to strengthen workforce, operational strategies”, 8 November 2026.
- Punch: “NAF redeploys senior officers, appoints new commanders”, November 2026.
- The Authority: “NAF approves major leadership shake-up, redeploys senior officers”, 8 November 2026.
All four reports carry the same official statement by the NAF Director of Public Relations and Information. Names are given with initials as in the statement. DefenceMENA review: four-outlet cross-check of names and posts; only appointments reported identically by at least two outlets are listed.