The Nigerian Air Force has yet again shown its humane side by assisting in the airlift of COVID-19 medical relief materials donated by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) with the support of donor partners like Team Europe, the German Government, United Nations Development Programme & Deutsche Gesellschaft Fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). The relief materials which will be distributed to the 14-member nations of ECOWAS, Nigeria inclusive, are in response to the spread of the second wave of COVID-19.

Flagging off the airlift of the relief materials at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, yesterday 30 March 2021, the leader of the ECOWAS Delegation and Vice President of ECOWAS Commission, Her Excellency Finda Koroma, stated that the need for essential medical supplies became necessary to enable ECOWAS countries cope with increasing cases of infection as the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to increase especially in West Africa. She noted that the first ECOWAS support to member states of critically needed medical supplies was in August 2020 and the efforts went a long way in ameliorating the shortages experienced in some vital materials required to curb the spread of the pandemic. She expressed gratitude to the Government of Nigeria and the ECOWAS COVID-19 champion, President Muhammadu Buhari, for the logistics support to ECOWAS in the airlift of the relief materials. Ms Koroma further noted with thanks the willingness of the NAF to always be on hand to provide airlift support whenever called upon and specifically thanked the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, for the express approval given for the NAF C-130 aircraft to undertake the mission of distributing the items to ECOWAS countries in dire need.

In his remarks at the flag off of the airlift, the CAS who was represented by the Director of Operations, Air Vice Marshal (AVM) Ayoola Jolasinmi, stated that the NAF considered the airlifting of the items a great privilege and worthy contribution to a noble cause. While assuring the ECOWAS Commission of NAF’s commitment towards the success of the operation, he reiterated NAF’s readiness to always fulfill its constitutional role of ‘Military Assistance to Civil Authority’ whenever called upon. The about 4,000kg relief materials, which included laboratory diagnostic kits, Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), intensive care equipment as well as miscellaneous medical accessories will be airlifted by a 7 - man C-130 aircraft crew.

The NAF has a history of providing aid in the form of airlift to civil authorities. In March 2020, it airlifted medical materials donated by the Jack Ma Foundation consisting of 107 boxes of medical supplies and equipment weighing over 1,360kg. Similarly, in April 2020, the NAF airlifted medical equipment and supplies donated by the Turkish Government from Lagos to Abuja. The medical items weighing about 4,000 Kg, were airlifted by a NAF C-130 Hercules aircraft to the Central Storage Facility in Abuja on behalf of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19. The same period also witnessed the NAF airlifting a team of stranded Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) health officials from Congo Brazzaville, where they had travelled for a World Health Organization training programme on the management of COVID-19. These efforts were beside the numerous in-country flights organised for officials of the Federal Ministry of Health, NCDC and other officials for ease of movement in the conduct of their responsibilities.