NAF records 18 months without fatal air crashes, adopts force-wide safety culture — Air Chief
By: Zagazola Makama
The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has recorded an unprecedented 18-month streak without any fatal air accidents, marking a significant milestone in flight safety and operational discipline.
Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, disclosed this during a media parley with media executives in Abuja, where he presented key reforms aimed at institutionalizing a robust safety culture across the Air Force.
According to him, the last one and a half years have been free of any fatal crash incidents, a development he attributed to the deliberate institutionalization of safety awareness across all levels of the force.
“This is probably the first time in decades that we have had such a record,” Abubakar said. “We implemented several initiatives, but most importantly, we focused on entrenching what we now call a safety culture.”
He explained that the safety culture initiative was not limited to technical and operational personnel alone but extended to every member of the NAF, including those in administrative, logistics, and financial roles.
“We believe that safety is not exclusive to those flying or maintaining aircraft. Every officer and airman must have a sense of responsibility toward safety. Accidents are never acts of God; they result from preventable chains of events,” he said.
Abubakar noted that all NAF training institutions now include a mandatory safety module, regardless of the course of study. “Whether in finance school or logistics training, personnel are exposed to safety principles to build force-wide awareness,” he said.
He stressed that NAF’s ultimate goal is to achieve a zero-accident environment, acknowledging the difficulty but affirming that the force was on the right path.
“We are working toward zero accidents and incidents, and although that’s a tough target, we believe it’s achievable through collective vigilance and discipline,” he added.
In furtherance of this goal, the NAF recently reviewed and updated its official safety policy document, and for the first time, established a formal Safety Management System (SMS) — a structured framework designed to enhance risk mitigation, operational monitoring, and continuous safety improvement.
“We have also developed a user-friendly manual on safety that simplifies complex concepts, making them accessible to every member of the force,” Abubakar said.
He emphasized that every accident can be avoided if the chain of causative events is identified and broken early, stressing that “awareness is the key.”
According to him, the reduced rate of both operational and non-operational incidents in recent months is a direct result of the emphasis on individual and institutional responsibility toward safety.
Abubakar assured that the NAF would continue to build on these gains, incorporating technology, data, and best global practices in ensuring the safety of its men and air assets across the country.
