Combat Sports: NAF Troops Scale Toughness Drills Competition; Performance & Outcome, a Giant Leap – Kogi Governor

Jos, the Plateau State Capital, on Thursday witnessed the dominant air power capabilities of the Nigerian Air force as some of its fighter jets led by the L39 Albatross and the F7Ni supersonic jet, dazzled citizens of the state to several frightening air displays as part of activities drawing the curtain on the 2017 NAF Combat Sports drills completion.

Several dignitaries at the Nigerian Air force Military School Sports pavilion including Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi state who was the special guest, Minister of Sports, Barr. Solomon Dalong, members of the Kogi State Executive Council, Directors, Joint Services and Air force at the Ministry of Defence could not help but marvel at the dexterity and maneuverability of the NAF pilots aboard the aircraft.  

The displays climaxed the efforts of the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar’s resolve to improve the toughness of NAF’s air and ground personnel, especially towards sustenance of the war on terror and rising up to the challenges of many security crises confronting the nation.

Towards this end, the 2nd edition of the Inter Command Combat Sports competition (Jos 2017) which commenced in Jos on March 27, 2017 resulted in many new records set by agile and gallant personnel of the various commands of the NAF.

This Jos 2017 competition which was competed for by NAF Headquarters (NAF HQ), Tactical Air Command (TAC), Mobility Command (MC), and Training Command (TC), Logistics Command, (LC) also had the newly established Special Operations Command (SOC) making its debut in the combat sports competition, bringing the total to six.

Speaking at the occasion, Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State said, “In the past couple of days the various sporting events such as combat relay race, combat swimming, boxing, judo, taekwondo and shooting and the outcome has left no one in doubt of the capability of the NAF.

“I am therefore convinced that the first and last key drivers of the CAS vision, which are human capacity development through robust and result oriented training for enhanced professional performance and focus on comradeship, regimentation and inter-service cooperation’ are Germaine to the inter-command combat sports competition.

“With the new skills and experience acquired in the course of the competition, NAF personnel are now better poised to give back to the system, their take away, by way of putting in their utmost best in the defence of our dear father land, especially in this testing and trying times of widespread insecurity in the country.

At the end of the competition, Headquarters, Nigeria Airforce (HQ NAF) emerged overall victors with nine (9) gold medals; second position went to Training Command while third position went to Special operations Command.

The best marksman of the combat competition went to flight Sergeant Akpata Adeniyi while the Tug of War competition was won by logistics Command. Obstacle crossing competition was also won by Logistics Command.

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