Ghana Air Force | |
---|---|
Founded | 29 July 1959 |
Country | Ghana |
Type | Air force |
Role | Aerial warfare |
Size | 22 aircraft [1] |
Part of | Ghana Armed Forces |
Headquarters | Burma Camp |
Colours | |
Engagements | First Liberian Civil War [2] [3] Second Ivorian Civil War [4] [5] [6] Mali War [7] [8] |
Commanders | |
Chief of the Air Staff | Air Vice Marshal Frederick Asare Bekoe |
Insignia | |
Roundel | |
Fin flash | |
Aircraft flown | |
Fighter | Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano |
Patrol | Diamond DA42 Twin Star |
Trainer | Hongdu K-8 Karakorum |
Transport | EADS CASA C-295, Fokker F28 Fellowship |
The Ghana Air Force (GHF) is the aerial warfare organizational military branch of the Ghanaian Armed Forces (GAF). The GHF, along with the Ghanaian army (GA) and Ghanaian navy (GN), make up the Ghanaian Armed Forces (GAF), which are controlled by the Ghanaian Ministry of Defence (MoD).
The GHF (Ghana Air Force) started on 24 July 1959 as a Flying Training School with Israeli instructors and technicians, under the command of Lt. Col. Adam Shatkay of the IAF. The School was established as a cradle of a service to complement the Army and the Navy. Later that year a headquarters was established in Accra under the command of Indian Air commodore K. Jaswant-Singh who was appointed as the first Chief of Air Staff (CAS). [9] In 1960 Royal Air Force personnel took up the task of training the newly established Ghana Air Force and in 1961 they were joined by a small group of Royal Canadian Air Force personnel. In September 1961 as part of President Kwame Nkrumah's Africanization program, a Ghanaian CAS was appointed, with the first being J.E.S. de Graft-Hayford, born in the U.K. of Ghanaian descent.
The Ghana Air Force was in the beginning equipped with a squadron of Chipmunk trainers, and squadrons of Beavers, Otters and Caribou transport aircraft. In addition a DH125 jet was bought for Kwame Nkrumah, Hughes helicopters were bought for mosquito spraying plus DH Doves and Herons. British-made Westland Whirlwind helicopters and a squadron of Italian-made MB-326 ground attack/trainer jets were also purchased.
In 1962 the national School of Gliding was set up by Hanna Reitsch, who was once Adolf Hitler's top personal pilot. Under the command of Air Commodore de Graft-Hayford, she served as director, operations instructor and trainer of the school. She also acted as the personal pilot of Kwame Nkrumah from 1962 to 1966.
The GHF headquarters is located at Burma Camp and the main transport airfield is the Air Force Base Accra, which shares the same runway with the Kotoka International Airport. Other GHF airfields include:
The role of the Ghana Air Force, as defined in the National Defence Policy, is to provide "Air Transport and Offensive Air Support to the Ghana Armed Forces and to protect the territorial air space of Ghana". The National Defense Policy states certain specific tasks which the Ghana Air Force is expected to perform:
The Ghana Air Force is also responsible for the co-ordination and direction of Search and Rescue (SAR) within the Accra Flight Information Region. [9]
Aircraft | Origin | Type | Variant | In service | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Combat | ||||||
Embraer EMB 314 | Brazil | light attack / COIN | 5 on order [10] | |||
Reconnaissance | ||||||
Diamond DA42 | Austria | surveillance | 2 [11] | |||
Transport | ||||||
CASA C-295 | Spain | utility / transport | 2 [11] | |||
Helicopters | ||||||
Mil Mi-24 | Russia | attack | Mi-35 | 1 on order [11] | ||
Mil Mi-17 | Russia | utility / transport | Mi-17/171 | 6 [11] | ||
Bell 412 | United States | utility | 1 [11] | |||
Harbin Z-9 | China | utility | 4 [11] | |||
Trainer aircraft | ||||||
Aero L-39NG | Czech Republic | jet trainer | 6 on order [12] | |||
Hongdu K-8 | China | jet trainer | 4 [11] | |||
Diamond DA42 | Austria | multi engine trainer | 1 [11] |
Previous notable aircraft operated were the Aermacchi MB-339, MB-326, DHC-4 Caribou, Fokker F27 Friendship, de Havilland Heron, Short Skyvan, BN-2 Islander, Beagle Husky, DHC-3 Otter, Cessna 172, Bell 212, Westland Wessex, Aérospatiale Alouette III, Mil Mi-2, Scottish Aviation Bulldog, DHC-1 Chipmunk, L-29 Delfín,HAL HT-2 and the Aero L-39ZO [13] [14]
The senior appointment in the GHF is the Chief of Air Staff. The following is a list of the Ghana Air Force Chiefs of Air Staff: [15]
Chief of Air Staff | Conscription | Note |
---|---|---|
Air Commodore K. Jaswant-Singh | May 1959 – August 1960 | Indian |
Wing Commander I. M. Gundry-White | September 1960 – March 1961 | British |
Air Commodore John N. H. Whitworth | March 1961 – September 1962 | British |
Air Commodore J.E.S. de Graft-Hayford | September 1962 – July 1963 | First Ghanaian CAS |
Air Vice-Marshal Michael Otu | July 1963 – March 1968 [16] | |
Air Commodore N. Y. R. Ashley-Larsen | March 1968 – January 1971 | |
Air Commodore Charles Beausoliel | January 1971 – December 1971 | |
Air Commodore N. Y. R. Ashley-Larsen | December 1971 – January 1972 | |
Air Commodore Charles Beausoliel | December 1972 – November 1976 | |
Air Vice Marshal George Yaw Boakye | November 1976 – June 1979 | |
Wing Commander Samuel Gyabaah [17] | June 1979 – July 1979 | |
Group Captain F. W. K. Klutse | July 1979 – December 1979 | |
Air Commodore J. E. Odaate- Barnor | December 1979 – May 1980 | |
Air Commodore K. K. Pumpuni | May 1980 – January 1982 | |
Group Captain E. A. A. Awuviri | January 1982 – December 1982 | |
Air Vice Marshal J. E. A. Kotei | December 1982 – June 1988 | |
Air Marshal Harry Dumashie | June 1988 – June 1992 | |
Air Marshal John Asamoah Bruce | 5 June 92 – February 2001 (? – 16 March 2001) | |
Air Vice Marshal Edward Apau Mantey | February 2001 – January 2005 [18] | |
Air Vice Marshal Julius Otchere Boateng | 20 May 2005 – to 28 January 2009 [19] | |
Air Vice Marshal M. Samson-Oje | 31 March 2009 – January 2016 [20] | |
Air Vice Marshal Maxwell Mantsebi-Tei Nagai | January 2016 – January 2019 [20] | |
Air Vice Marshal Frank Hanson | January 2019 – January 2023 [20] | |
Air Vice Marshal Frederick Asare Bekoe | January 2023 – present |
The GHF's rank structure is similar to the RAF's rank structure from where its ranks were derived.
Rank group | General / flag officers | Senior officers | Junior officers | |||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ghana Air Force [21] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Air chief marshal | Air marshal | Air vice-marshal | Air commodore | Group captain | Wing commander | Squadron leader | Flight lieutenant | Flying officer | Pilot officer |
Rank group | Senior NCOs | Junior NCOs | Enlisted | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ghana Air Force [21] | No insignia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Warrant officer class I | Warrant officer class II | Flight sergeant | Sergeant | Corporal | Leading aircraftsman | Aircraftsman |
Transport in Ghana is accomplished by road, rail, air and water. Ghana's transportation and communications networks are centered in the southern regions, especially the areas in which gold, cocoa, and timber are produced. The northern and central areas are connected through a major road system.
The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) is the state military organisation of Ghana, consisting of the Army (GA), Navy (GN), and Ghana Air Force.
Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, 20.4 km2 (7.9 sq mi), had a population of 284,124 inhabitants, and the larger Greater Accra Region, 3,245 km2 (1,253 sq mi), had a population of 5,455,692 inhabitants. In common usage, the name "Accra" often refers to the territory of the Accra Metropolitan District as it existed before 2008, when it covered 199.4 km2 (77.0 sq mi). This territory has since been split into 13 local government districts: 12 independent municipal districts and the reduced Accra Metropolitan District (20.4 km2), which is the only district within the capital to be granted city status. This territory of 199.4 km2 contained 1,782,150 inhabitants at the 2021 census, and serves as the capital of Ghana, while the district under the jurisdiction of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly proper (20.4 km2) is distinguished from the rest of the capital as the "City of Accra".
Kotoka International Airport is an international airport in Accra, the capital of Ghana. The airport is operated by Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL), which has its offices on the airport property. Until the upgrading of the Tamale and Kumasi airports to international standards, KIA, for a longtime, was the sole international airport in Ghana.
Ghana Airways Limited was the flag carrier of Ghana, with its main base of operation and hub at Kotoka International Airport in Accra. The airline ceased operations in 2004, although plans were discussed to revive it in 2020 in partnership with Egyptair.
Sekondi-Takoradi is a city in Ghana comprising the twin cities of Sekondi and Takoradi. It is the capital of Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan District and the Western Region of Ghana. Sekondi-Takoradi is the region's largest city as well as an industrial and commercial center with a population of 104,847 people, according to the 2021 census. The current mayor of the city and the metropolitan as a whole is Hon. Abdul-Mumin Issah.
Articles related to Ghana include:
Takoradi Airport is an airport in Sekondi-Takoradi, a city and capital of Western Region southern Ghana. It is the fourth busiest airport in Ghana, with 123,930 passengers in 2022.
Operation Guitar Boy was the code-name for an attempted coup d'état on 17 April 1967 in Ghana, by a group of junior officers of the Ghana Armed Forces. Although unsuccessful, the coup resulted in the assassination of Lieutenant General Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka, Ghana's Chief of the Defence Staff.
The Ghana Army is the principal land warfare force of Ghana. In 1959, two years after the Gold Coast became independent from the British Empire, the Gold Coast Regiment was withdrawn from the Royal West African Frontier Force and formed the basis for the new Ghanaian army. Together with the Ghana Air Force and Ghana Navy, the Ghana Army makes up the Ghana Armed Forces, which is controlled by the Ghanaian Ministry of Defence and Central Defence Headquarters, both of which are located in the Greater Accra Region.
Lieutenant-General Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka Born was a Ghanaian military officer who was a member of the ruling National Liberation Council which came to power in Ghana in a military coup d'état on 24 February 1966. This overthrew the government of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the first president of the republic.
The Ghana Navy (GN) is the naval warfare organizational military branch of the Ghanaian Armed Forces (GAF). The Ghanaian Navy, along with the Ghanaian Army (GA) and Ghanaian Air Force (GHF), make up the Ghanaian Armed Forces (GAF) which are controlled by the Ghanaian Ministry of Defence (MoD).
Ministry of Defence (MoD) of the government of Ghana, is the governmental department responsible for defending the Republic of Ghana from internal and external military threats and promotion of Ghanaian national defence interests. The MoD political head is the Defence Minister of Ghana, and its offices are located in Accra, Greater Accra.
Ghanaian Arabs are Ghanaians and citizens of Arab origin or descent. Ghanaian Arabs are mainly from Lebanon, Syria and Arab Maghreb. Ghana has the largest Arab population in western Africa.
Air Marshal Achilles Harry Kwami Dumashie, often known as Harry Dumashie, was a Ghanaian soldier. He served as Chief of Air Staff and as Ghanaian Chief of Defence Staff from 1992 to 1996.
Vice Admiral Mathew Quashie was a Ghanaian naval officer and was the twenty-ninth Chief of Defence Staff of the Ghana Armed Forces. He also served as the Chief of Naval Staff of the Ghana Navy from 3 April 2009 to 28 March 2013.
Felicia Ewuraesi Abban was Ghana's first female professional photographer. She worked as a photographer for the country's first president, Kwame Nkrumah, for a number of years during the 1960s.
Pisces Aviation is a domestic airline of Ghana with its head office in Accra, Ghana, and its main hub at Kotoka International Airport in Accra.
Michel Camp is the base of the First Battalion of Infantry of the Ghana Army. It is located at Tema in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. The First Battalion together with the Second and Fifth Battalions of Infantry make up the Southern Command of the Ghana Army.
Air Vice Marshall Frederick Asare Kwasi Bekoe is a Ghanaian military officer currently serving as the Chief of Air Staff of the Ghana Air Force. He was appointed to this position by President Nana Akufo-Addo on 26 January 2023.