MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- The commandant of the Nigerian Air Force Air Warfare Centre led a visit to Air University Feb. 8-10, 2023, to learn about its mission and bring back lessons learned and new ways for the Nigerian and U.S. air forces to collaborate.
The Air Warfare Centre stood up in 2022 to support Nigerian airmen across the spectrum of air warfare, ranging from training and operational readiness to doctrine and tactics development.
Air Vice Marshal Michal Onybashi, Air Warfare Centre commandant, visited the Curtis E. LeMay Center for Doctrine Development and Education, Air War College, the Air University Teaching and Learning Center, the Air Force Culture and Language Center, and International Officer School. At the LeMay Center, he focused on doctrine development, lessons learned, and wargaming.
“We’ve acquired new platforms, so to utilize them effectively we need to provide the education required to support our airmen.” Onyebashi said. “That is why the Air Warfare Centre was established.”
Onyebashi said that “the LeMay Center is the gold standard in terms of doctrine formulation, doctrine development and training. Right now, we are focusing on doctrine development, and then teaching doctrine to our people.”
The visit served to further strengthen ties and understanding between the two countries’ air forces, according to Col. Alex Ganster, International Officer School commander.
“These visits are valuable for our partners and allies, but they are also great learning and development opportunities for us,” said Ganster. “The Nigerian Air Force has its own set of challenges and overcomes them in ways that our Air Force can learn from and apply to our current environment.”
Onyebashi also believes that the Nigerian Air Force can provide some valuable perspective to the U.S. Air Force, especially operating in cross-cultural and multi-lingual environments.
“We have a multinational joint task force with our neighbors Niger, Chad, and Cameroon,” said Onyebashi. “They are Francophone, and we are Anglophone, so we have to work with each other to come to understanding and common decisions. We are a relatively small air force, but we can have a large impact because of the respect between partners.”