The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) on Saturday in Abuja held its Third Quarter 2017 Route March Exercise for officers and airmen/airwomen serving.

The exercise witnessed a large turnout of members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), who joined the NAF personnel.

Led by the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, the personnel marched off from Mogadishu Cantonment to Niger Barracks and back, covering a distance of 10km walk, within the Abuja Metropolis.

The aim of the quarterly exercise is to constantly keep NAF personnel physically and mentally fit to enable them discharge their constitutional duties efficiently.

Addressing participants at the end of the route march, Air Marshal Abubakar commended them for demonstrating a high level of physical fitness, noting that no matter how intelligent or dedicated they were, it would be practically impossible to effectively discharge their statutory responsibilities without a sound body. He reminded personnel of the need to exercise regularly because “today’s military is a military that requires a sound mind in a sound body.”

The CAS, who spoke on the current efforts at addressing the security challenges in the country, stated that the NAF and other security agencies were working in synergy to ensure a conducive and peaceful atmosphere for businesses to thrive.

While expatiating on some of the recent landmark achievements in the NAF, Air Marshal Abubakar recalled that the NAF successfully airlifted relief materials donated by the Federal Government to the mudslide and flood victims in Sierra Leone, using the NAF C-130 Hercules aircraft.

He also said that the NAF, in recent times, had successfully airlifted participants of the National Defence College in Abuja and the Armed Forces Command and Staff College Jaji to various African countries on study tours and would continue to do so.

He added that the NAF was also on the verge of airlifting participants at the Air Force War College on a study tour of 2 African countries, commending the personnel, remarking that all the feats of the NAF would not have been possible without their commitment and dedication to duty.

Speaking further, the CAS informed the personnel that the Federal Government and indeed Nigerians in general appreciated their sacrifices, advising personnel not to rest on their oars but rather redouble their efforts until those efforts result in completely stabilising the security situation in the country.

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