The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal SK Aneke, has declared that defeating Nigeria’s increasingly sophisticated security threats requires intelligence-led operations, integrated military action and the effective employment of decisive air power.
According to an official statement signed by the Director of Public Relations and Information, Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, the CAS made the assertion while delivering a lecture titled “Air Power and National Security: The Nigerian Air Force in Perspective” to participants of National Defence College Course 34 at the National Defence College, Abuja, on Friday, 3 July 2026.
The statement said the audience comprised senior officers of the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, Nigerian Air Force and the Nigeria Police Force, alongside participants from various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), as well as 20 international participants from allied countries.
Addressing the gathering, Air Marshal Aneke underscored the indispensable role of air power in tackling today’s increasingly complex security environment through integrated military operations and a whole-of-government approach.
He observed that Nigeria’s contemporary security landscape has evolved beyond conventional warfare, with terrorists, bandits, separatist groups, transnational organised criminal networks and other non-state actors increasingly exploiting emerging technologies, difficult terrain and civilian populations to evade detection and undermine national security.
The Air Chief stressed that countering such highly adaptable threats requires robust inter-agency structures capable of integrating intelligence from air, land, maritime, cyber and human domains into a unified operational picture that enables timely and decisive action.
Air Marshal Aneke described air power as a strategic enabler of national security, noting that it provides the speed, reach, precision and flexibility required for intelligence gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance, rapid force deployment, border and maritime security, protection of critical national infrastructure and precision operations while minimising civilian casualties.
Emphasising the importance of collaboration, the CAS declared that “No single Service can secure the nation alone,” adding that decisive air power achieves its greatest impact when employed in synergy with land and maritime forces. He said sustained operational success depends on intelligence sharing, joint planning and synchronised execution across all operational domains.
The CAS also identified cyber threats, the proliferation of unmanned aerial systems, information warfare, piracy, arms trafficking and other transnational crimes as emerging security challenges confronting the country. He warned that hostile actors increasingly exploit cyberspace and social media to spread disinformation, deepen social divisions and erode public confidence in state institutions, making cyber resilience and strategic communication critical elements of national security.
Reflecting on the Nigerian Air Force’s evolution over the past six decades, Air Marshal Aneke said the Service’s operational experiences in defending Nigeria’s sovereignty, supporting regional peace operations and addressing contemporary security threats have reinforced the need for indigenous capacity development, innovation, logistics resilience and continuous force modernisation.
He reaffirmed the Nigerian Air Force’s commitment to strengthening its operational capabilities through indigenous innovation, advanced intelligence systems, emerging technologies and strategic partnerships to sustain decisive air power in support of national security.
The Air Chief concluded that national security extends beyond territorial defence to protecting democratic institutions, critical infrastructure, economic prosperity and the overall well-being of Nigerians. He urged participants, as future strategic leaders, to continue promoting jointness, innovation and inter-agency cooperation as indispensable pillars for addressing the nation’s evolving security challenges.
