The Nigerian Air Force has taken delivery of the first of three JF-17 Thunder fighter jet from Pakistan. This is in continued efforts by Nigeria to expand its military weaponry and equipment to aid in the fight against ISWAP and Boko Haram terror organizations active in the country.
In 2018 Pakistan’s Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) approved a $184.3 million sovereign guarantee for the production of three Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC)/Chengdu JF-17 fighters. The fighters are expected to aid in the modernization of the fleet including replacing and or supplementing supplement its F-7Ni fleet – a third of its 15 F-7Ni/FT-7Ni aircraft have been lost in crashes. As of mid-2020 intelligence indicates that Nigerian Air Force pilots and crew for the JF-17 have been training in Pakistan.
While the West African nation struggles with a growing insurgency, it has made strides to expand its fleet to include a more modern catalog of fighters and other military equipment including contracting local companies to produces armored vehicles. The country had been battling a growing insurgency that has spread across the Lake Chad Basin with two groups both affiliations to ISIS i.e. Boko Haram and ISWAP.
