The Nigerian Air Force has advanced plans to acquire 12 AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters following a beam signing ceremony with Bell Textron in Amarillo, Texas, United States.
The ceremony, led by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, marked a milestone in the implementation of the Nigeria-United States Government defence cooperation programme.
According to a statement by the NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, the acquisition forms part of Federal Government efforts to modernise the Armed Forces and strengthen Nigeria’s defence and security capabilities.
Aneke said the AH-1Z Viper acquisition would improve the operational effectiveness of the Armed Forces and support the development of a more capable and mission-ready Nigerian Air Force.
He said the programme aligned with his command philosophy of maintaining a professional force capable of delivering airpower effects in coordination with surface forces to achieve national security objectives.
The Chief of the Air Staff thanked President Bola Tinubu for his support for the programme and acknowledged the contributions of the United States Government, Bell Textron, Programme Management Air 276 and other stakeholders. The NAF delegation also inspected the AH-1Z Viper production line during the visit.
The development comes six days after the NAF received five helicopters, comprising three AW-109 Trekker B helicopters manufactured by Leonardo Helicopters of Italy and two H-125 helicopters manufactured by Airbus Helicopters, as part of ongoing efforts to expand Nigeria’s airpower capabilities.
