During the 2019 Passing out Parade of the 187 Direct Short Service Course 28 at the Military Training Centre in Kaduna, Nigeria;s Vice President Professor Yemi Osibanjo made a bold claim. In his words:
”In a few years Nigeria will become by far the greatest military force in Africa”.
He assured Nigerians that ISWAP will be effectively contained to secure the country. He said:
“There is also the threat of the Islamic State of West Africa Province ISWAP in the Lake Chad Islands and part of Southern Borno.
“Also, more often these days, these insurgents are focusing on soft targets, opportunistic attacks on isolated military units, as well as on increasingly sophisticated propaganda aimed at making them out to be more organised and lethal than they really are.
“This ever-increasing reliance on propaganda is a reminder that this is not only a ‘battleground’ war; it is just as much an information-and-narrative war. “
“As 21st century military officers, how you project your strength and confidence to your enemies and the world, especially using social and digital media tools, is as important as the sophistication of the conventional arms and ammunition that you wield.
“We are Africa’s largest economy by GDP – states of Nigeria have larger economies than many African States. We have become the last frontier for major economic growth.
” We are the world’s largest growers of cassava and yams, we are top 5 in the world in sorghum, millet, we are approaching self-sufficiency in paddy rice production.
“Our potential in technology and entertainment has been attracting huge attention, first is the market. At 174 million GSM phones we are top ten telephone users in the world, and we have the highest percentage of people who use internet on their phones in the world.
“We are also number two in mobile internet banking in the world, 17 million Nigerians are on Facebook.
“Microsoft has announced that it will establish a 100 million dollar African Development Centre in Nigeria.
“We are already building our own drones. But not only are we building drones, we are also making spare parts for our aircrafts.
“We are also manufacturing armourd personnel carriers, and all sorts of different military platforms.
Now, of course i had my doubts. I found this to be needless hyperbole but, i decided to look into this claim by reviewing past, present and future force structure and i realized he may be right in some areas. Nigeria already lead the continent in a few key areas.
Space Research and Infrastructure
ISTAR/ELINT/ISR Capability
Combat Helicopter Fleet.
Despite numerous much publicized failures and problems with corruption and grafts, the Nigerian military is in actuality a well equipped and organized fighting force that places a heavy emphasis on combined arms and is prepared to fight in almost any environment. This is unique among most African armies.
Lets begin with Nigeria’s Rotary Wing assets.
Nigeria is barely halfway through a large-scale expansion of its fleet of combat helicopters and it already fields arguably the largest fleet of combat helicopters in sub sahara Africa. The military is enlarging its fleet and changing tactical employment based on mission requirements.
Nigeria’s current fleet of attack helicopter force includes:
Mi-24 Hind helicopter gunship.
Mi-35M helicopter gunship.
Mi-17sh Multirole Helicopter.
Austa Westland Power Helicopters.
This is the largest helicopter force in Sub Sahara Africa. An impressive arsenal by African standards. A large chunk of Nigeria’s rotary wing assets is made in Russia, and for good reasons. Russian helicopters serve as a force multiplier for the cash strapped Nigerian military. They are designed for multiple missions. Even their utility helicopters can be well armed, and helicopter gunships can haul cargo and troops.
Mil Mi-17SH Helicopter
This heavy utility helicopter has proven to be a useful workhorse for Nigerian forces in the counter insurgency operation. The Mi-17 can carry passengers or cargo at speeds of 280 km/h to ranges of over 800 km. They are a regular feature in combat support roles. The Mi-17 has machine guns for supressive fire and can carry rockets and bombs on six stub wing hard-points.
As one of the largest helicopter in the Nigerian Air Force inventory the Mi-17 serves as an assault or general cargo transport in Nigerian divisions, providing substantial support to operations in their rear areas.
Each Mi-17 can transport up to 30 troops or can be configured in a variety of missions like medical evacuation or rescue.
The Mi-17 is similar in characteristics to the US UH-60 Black Hawk, but is significantly better than the Black Hawk in terms of technical and other characteristics. For example, the range of actions of Black Hawk is by almost two times shorter, than those of Mi-17. The range of flight of UH-60 Black Hawk is 495 kilometers, compared with 950 kilometers of Mi-17. The US helicopter can take about 11 troops on board, while the Russian one – up to 26 people.
Also the engine, which is used by Mi-17 has a power of 2,0000 h/p, compared to 1,400 h/p of Black Hawk. Such powerful engines allow the Mi-17 to operate in difficult climatic conditions, a capability crucial for medical evacuation or insertion of troops behind enemy lines.
The Mi17 can be devastating on the battlefield when armed. They are equiped with a variety of weapons systems, such as 12.7 mm nose machine guns, 57 mm 32 shot rocket pods and anti-tank guided missiles.
Also rifle men can fire through bods on both sides of the helicopter. They are among the most heavily armed helicopters in the world.
Mi-24 Hind Helicopter Gunship
This helicopter is an example of all purpose utility that characterizes most Russian helicopter designs. It has a speed of 350 km/h and a range of 455 km. It can carry eight fully equipped or 12 lightly equipped soldiers. Instead of troops it can carry a full reload of ammunition for its weapons system. The Mi-24 Hind suppprt missions include small unit insertions, intelligence raids to pick up prisoners or attacking special targets.
The Mi-24 hind is primarily designed for tactical employment as a close air support aircraft. Armament include four 57 mm 32 shor rocket pods, or four bombs, four anti-tank guided missiles. The 12.7 mm four barrel gatling gun is radar directed and can be elevated 15 degrees or depressed 16 degrees.
For survivability the Mi-24 is extensively amour plated. The pilot has good protection against all small arms fire. There is excellent forward and lateral visibility due to large bubble canopies. The Mi-24 has a full system of flight navigation and fire control systems for operation in any weather, day or night. They can execute tactical air assault against soft target areas such as command and control centers or provude close air support for maneiuvefr units. It is well suited for an anti-amour role. Itcarries anti-tank missiles mounted on its stub wings and has a long range standoff capability.
For troop insertion Mi-24 helicopters will be found escourting large flights of Mi-17sh helicopters. The Mi-24 is capable of executing special missions on its own, such as intelligence gathering or transporting Special Forces Units.
Mi-35M Helicopter Gunship
The Mi-35M is basically the Mi-24 on steroids, with three times the capability, including all weather night and day attack capability, air to air missiles and can carry out intelligence operations.
It features a rotary gun turret and advanced navigation equipment. The Mi-35 M is one of the most sophisticated attack helicopters in the world. Nigeria acquired 12 brand new Mi-35 helicopters and is expecting to take deliver of another six units in the coming months.
This reconnaissance strike helicopter, in combination with Mi-24s and Power Helicopters are planned to be the main combat force of the Nigerian Air Force for the next several years.
Augusta Westland High Speed Power Helicopter
The Agusta Westland Power attack helicopter is high speed attack helicopter capable of striking armored and non-armored vehicles and air targets on the battlefield and is well-suited with a host of counter-measures for survivability.
So far two of these modern helicopters have been delivered with another six to be delivered in the coming months. The procurement of this Italian built attack helicopter will help boost Nigeria’s fleet of combat helicopters.
This light all-weather, two-seat anti-armor attack helicopter has good combat capabilities, as it carries a stub-mounted gun, plus external loads carried on pylons beneath stub wings.
Its most impressive feature however is its speed. High speed is a very big advantage for a helicopter, especially at the front, which allows it to quickly move over the battlefield, after the completion of the mission. In addition, these helicopters are less vulnerable for small arms and the majority of other weapons.
FORCE MULTIPLIER
In addition to these attack helicopters, further expansion of Nigeria’s combat helicopter fleet will be carried out through weaponiszation of all its heavy and light utility helicopters. The increment in the acquisition of utility helicopters observed in recent years appears to be strategic in nature afterall.
Nigeria’s fleet of non-combat helicopters include:
Eurocopter S330 Helicopter
Agusta Westland Utility Helicopter
Bel 412 Utility Helicopter
EC-135 Helicopter
Compared to combat helicopters light utility helicopter are relatively inexpensive, in terms of both upfront and operational cost. Giving these utility helicopters a secondary light attack capability is cost effective.
Bell 412 Helicopter
Augusta Westland Helicopter
EC-190 Helicopter
Eurcopter Super Puma Helicopter
There are also plans to fit some of them with sophisticated surveillance equipment and sensors, effectvely turning them into reconnaissance strike helicopters.
Nigeria’s combat helicopters, in combination with the arming and modernization of light utility helicopters will significantly strengthen the combat capability of the Nigerian Air Force, increasing the number of combat capable helicopters in the Nigerian Air Force fleet to over 100. Making it by far the largest fleet of combat helicopters in Sub Sahara Africa, and a serious challenge to any potential aggressor.
The quantity, mobility and firepower of Nigerian helicopters, particularly the Mi-24, Mi-35, Mi-17 and Augusta Power helicopters provides the Nigerian military with a credible ready on demand overwhelming firepower. That is not to say they are invulnerable. No weapons platform is invulnerable, but Nigeria’s growing combat helicopter force posses a formidable challenge to any attacking adversary.
DefenseNigeria 