The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has reaffirmed its commitment to improving the welfare and healthcare of the veterans who once served it.
Air Commodore Ademuyiwa Adedoyin, the Director of Veteran Affairs Department, Headquarters, NAF, said this on Saturday during the 2026 Chief of Air Staff (CAS) parley with veterans.
The parley was held at Logistics Command, NAF, Ikeja, Lagos State.
Adedoyin said the engagement was designed to directly address veterans’ healthcare needs, financial welfare, economic integration and sustained interaction with the service.
“The initiative is basically to create a platform where we can relate with our retired colleagues and appreciate them for the services they rendered while on active duty.
“It is also an opportunity for old colleagues to meet themselves once again and socialise.
“During the interaction, their challenges were made known to us and we will take the appropriate steps to solve them,” he said.
He explained that the initiative also serves as a morale booster for serving officers, reassuring them that the Air Force maintains strong ties with its personnel even after retirement.
“Some of us still in active service will soon be retiring. This is also a way of preparing the future for those of us that will be retiring soon.
“So, it is also a kind of self-enlightening programme before retirement,” Adedoyin said.
The director added that the Ministry of Defence was working on plans to identify gaps, including ungoverned spaces, where military veterans could be engaged to contribute their skills and experience.
He further disclosed that the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, approved a substantial financial support package in December 2025 to enable NAF widows celebrate the yuletide.
“We have a well established system in which the widows of our fallen heroes are also taken care of,” he said.
Air Vice-Marshal Nicholas Spiff Rtd. said the parley was an opportunity to sensitise veterans on the importance of healthy living after retirement.
Spiff noted that transitioning from decades of military service to civilian life could be challenging, stressing the need for regular exercise and healthy eating.
“We have gained so many skills in the military that can make us live a useful life after military service, so we should not lose hope,” he said.
Also speaking, Master Warrant Officer (MWO) Somorin Olusanya thanked the CAS for the initiative, saying he learned valuable lessons on maintaining good health through proper diet and exercise.
Similarly, MWO Babatunde Ogunbiyi expressed appreciation for the parley, noting that it gave him the opportunity to reconnect with colleagues he had not seen for many years.
He, however, appealed to the organisers to provide a larger venue at future engagements to comfortably accommodate the growing number of veterans attending the event.
Master Warrant Officer (MWO) Somorin Olusanya thanked the CAS for the initiative.
He said he learnt about eating healthy and exercising to remain strong in and after service, to remain healthy and relevant.
Also, MWO Babatunde Ogunbiyi thanked the CAS for the initiative because it afforded him the opportunity to see some of his colleagues whom he had not seen in a long while.
Ogunbiyi, however, pleaded with the organising committee to get a bigger hall to accommodate the large number of veterans for a more comfortable experience. (NAN)