Air Chief commends NAF engineers for restoring inactive aircraft
The Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, has praised military engineers and technicians for successfully restoring a Dornier DO-228 aircraft that had been out of service for 23 years.
Abubakar acknowledged the efforts of five engineers and 40 technicians, commending their commitment and describing the feat as a reflection of the Nigerian Air Force’s (NAF) focus on self-reliance and efficient resource management.
The aircraft, originally designated “5N-MPS,” was previously operated by the Ministry of Mines, Power, and Steel but had remained grounded at the DANA facility in Kaduna since 2001.
In a statement released on Wednesday, NAF spokesperson Air Vice Marshal Olusola Akinboyewa explained that the reactivation followed a presidential order to transfer dormant assets to the NAF for assessment. He stated that a specialized team, consisting of five engineers and 40 technicians from the NAF 431 Engineering Group in Kaduna, took on the reactivation project.
The NAF considered restoring the Dash 201 Series aircraft, which had only accumulated 1,081 flight hours since its purchase, as a unique opportunity to revitalize a valuable national asset. The aircraft has now been redesignated as “NAF-039.”
Akinboyewa further explained that the reactivation process, which took place between June and September 2024, required detailed planning and precise execution, demonstrating the team’s technical expertise and dedication.
The spokesperson emphasized that the restored aircraft would significantly enhance the NAF’s tactical airlift capacity, joining the fleet of DO-228 aircraft still actively in use globally.
He also highlighted that this achievement builds on the NAF’s earlier milestone of completing its first in-country 4,800-hour inspection of another DO-228 aircraft in January 2024.
“These accomplishments demonstrate the NAF’s expanding ability to perform advanced in-house aircraft maintenance and lay the groundwork for future initiatives aimed at achieving technical independence,” he concluded.