Nigeria pilots complete A-29 conversion course in USA

The Nigerian aircraft, and the graduating personnel have now joined the Nigerian Air Force’s Super Tucano squadron – the 407th Air Combat Training Group at Kainji Air Base. The final graduation ceremony was attended by Air Vice Marshal Sule Lawal, the Nigerian A-29 programme lead foreign liaison officer, who congratulated the student Super Tucano pilots and presented prizes.

Nigeria purchased twelve A-29 Super Tucano aircraft from the US government under a $493 million foreign military sales contract which also included spares, support, training, and simulators. The first Embraer/SNC A-29B Super Tucano light attack aircraft for Nigeria made its maiden flight on 16 April 2020, in the hands of SNC’s senior A-29 test pilot, Commander Robert Williams.

The training element of the package was provided by the 81st Fighter Squadron at Moody Air Force Base, who had previously trained Afghan pilots on the A-29. The 81^st ran a series of overlapping classes for the NAF personnel, with each class lasting for nine months. Nigerian Air Force training began in September 2020, and ended one year later.

Pilot training began with initial qualification training. This was intended to introduce pilots to the A-29, and allowed them to familiarise themselves with its flight characteristics. From there, pilots went on to mission training, learning how to use the aircraft it in a variety of operational environments, and learning how to employ the guns, rockets and bombs.

Many US allies see the US Air Force as something that they would like to emulate, and the partnership with the USAF allowed the Nigerian Air Force to develop improved TTPs (tactics, techniques and procedures) significantly improving combat effectiveness.

The last wave of A-29 Super Tucano aircraft departed Moody AFB for Nigeria, on the 15th of September 2021.