After the failed 1982 Kenyan Coup D’état by a group of Kenya Air Force officers on 1 August 1982, the Air Force was disbanded, only regaining its independent status in 1994.
The coup d’état attempt, which left more than 100 soldiers dead, was a failed planned attempt by a section of the national aerial warfare to overthrow President Daniel arap Moi’s government (Kenya’s second president after independence).
The execution of the plan happened at midnight on Sunday, 1 August 1982 when a group of soldiers from the Kenya Air Force took over the radio station Voice of Kenya and announced that they had overthrown the government.
The group tried to force a group of Air Force fighter pilots to bomb the State House. The pilots however dropped the bombs over Mount Kenya’s forests instead.
Hezekiah Ochuka, a Senior Private Grade-I, who was tried and found guilty of leading the coup attempt and hanged in 1987 had ruled Kenya for only six hours.
At the end of court judgments concerning the foiled coup attempt, a total of twelve people had been sentenced to death and over 900 jailed.
Following the coup d’état the Kenya Air Force activity was reconstituted and placed under tighter army control as the 82 Air Force under command of Major General Mohamoud Mohamed.
To date, the Kenya Air Force is under command of Major General Samuel Ng’ang’a Thuita who succeeded Major General Joff Otieno on 30 July 2014.
