Nigerian Air Force Takes Delivery Of Additional Gunships From Russia

Nigerian Air Force on Monday took delivery of two Mi-35M helicopter gunships ordered from Russia by the Federal government in 2015.

The newly delivered gunships are the second batch as two others were earlier delivered in December 2016.

The Antonov aircraft, which brought the new Mi-35M helicopters, touched down on the runway at NAF Base Makurdi at exactly 12.20 p.m. on Monday and would be deployed to counter terrorism operations after it is officially inducted into the Nigerian Air Force fighter jets assets in Kaduna state.

Receiving the gunships on behalf of the Chief of Air Staff, the Chief of Aircraft Engineering NAF Headquarters, Air Vice Marshal Abdulganiyu Olabisi, said the new gunships has night vision fighting capabilities.

According to him, the helicopters will help troops in the counter terrorism operations in both troubled North East and North Central region of the country.

Chief Of Aircraft Engineering, NAF Headquarters, Abdulganiyu Olabisi said the helicopters were needed to combat insecurity in the country. He added that after being assembled by the Russian experts in Nigeria, the helicopters will be deployed to war zones

“We are aware of the prevailing security situation in the country and the effort the Federal Government is making to ensure that every part of Nigeria is safe and secure.

“We are happy we have a team of Russian engineers who are going to assist in the reassembling of these helicopters,” he said.

He added that the helicopters will subsequently be deployed to the conflict zones in the country.