News
Six Super Tucanos expected in July – Presidency
By Bolaji Ogundele, Abuja
The Presidency on Thursday said six of the 12 Super-Tucano fighter jets ordered from the United States of America (USA) are due for delivery in the middle of July.
There have been brickbats over how $1 billion military equipment fund, drawn from the Excess Crude Account (ECA), was appropriated, after the National Security Adviser (NSA) Major General Babagana Monguno (Rtd), said the spending would be investigated during a recent media interviews.
However, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, on his twitter handle, said that the remaining six would arrive shortly after.
He said already 14 Nigerian pilots to handle the Tucanos are undergoing training at Moody Air Force Base in Georgia.
“The Super Tucanos came off the production line in Jacksonville Florida and are now being equipped and flight tested.
“Nigerian pilots and maintenance personnel are training on these planes. Currently, the construction is ongoing, which will house the aircraft.
“The Air-Ground-Integration school is the training hub on targeting and minimization of civilian casualties.
“At present, five Nigerian Super Tucanos are at Moody AFB in Georgia for pilot and maintainer training.
“The two companies released images of the sixth aircraft, which also will be flown to Moody, in a jungle camouflage scheme,” he stated.
The statement further quoted SNC as saying said that “The painted jungle scheme NAF A-29 now moves on to mission modification at Moody Air Force Base.”
“Following modification, before delivery, NAF pilots and maintenance personnel will further train in the aircraft.
“In November 2018, SNC was awarded a $329 million Foreign Military Sales contract from the US government to build 12 A-29s for the Nigerian air force. The armed turboprops are intended for use against Boko Haram and Islamic State ,”he said.
