Defence Minister Tells AWC Graduates To Turn Knowledge Into Real Battlefield Results

The Air Force War College Nigeria graduated 45 senior officers of Air War Course 12/2026 after nine months of intensive professional military education, strategic analysis and operational engagements, with graduands drawn from Nigeria and four allied countries, Botswana, Cameroon, Ghana and Morocco.

Delivering the keynote address at the Tenth Anniversary Special Graduation Ceremony, the Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa, represented by Major General C Ofoche, charged the graduates to regard their graduation as an assumption of greater responsibility.

He urged them to transform knowledge into sound planning, decision making and leadership, while championing jointness and unity of effort and harnessing emerging technologies alongside sound doctrine and resilient logistics.

Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke, represented by Air Vice Marshal AY Abdullahi, reaffirmed the Nigerian Air Force’s commitment to professional training and mission focused capability development.

The CAS, who noted that the graduation coincided with the College’s Tenth Anniversary, commended AFWCN for its contribution to professional military education and growing participation by Nigerian and allied officers.

He disclosed that construction of the College’s permanent site in Abuja is ongoing, with the next Air War Course expected to commence there, while also highlighting ongoing NAF fleet modernisation efforts.

Commandant of the College, Air Vice Marshal GA Mbaka, described the graduation as a significant milestone in the College’s decade long contribution to operational level military education, stressing the need for leaders to understand the wider dimensions of contemporary security challenges.

Highlights of the ceremony included the conferment of Fellowship on the graduands and past Commandants, presentation of certificates and awards, and the inauguration of the AFWCN Alumni Association.

The event also featured the launch of the Second Edition of the Airpower Magazine and the Tenth Anniversary Year Book, marking a decade of professional military education at the institution established in Makurdi in 2016.

By Asiwaju Adekunle Saheed