Ghanese luchtmacht

Slagorde · Ghana

Ghanese luchtmacht

Ghanese luchtmacht

The Ghana Air Force was set up in 1959 by Israeli instructors and an Indian air commodore, taken over by the RAF within a year, and has spent most of the time since as a small transport and helicopter service with a handful of jets — in 2026 it flies four K-8 trainers, Mi-17 and Z-9 helicopters and C-295 transports, is still waiting for the light attack aircraft it has announced since 2014, and is rebuilding after the Z-9 crash of 6 August 2025 that killed Ghana’s defence and environment ministers.

0Gevechtsvliegtuigen
4Actieve luchtbases
1959Opgericht
15Typen gepensioneerd
Photo: Xanderix / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)
LandGhanaOpgericht1959StatusActiefHoofdkwartierBurma Camp, AccraCommandantEric Agyen-Frempong
Het verhaal

The Ghana Air Force story: Israeli instructors in 1959, a flight lieutenant in power and a long wait for combat aircraft

1959–1966: Israeli instructors, an Indian chief and Nkrumah’s air force

The Ghana Air Force began two years after independence as a flying school run by foreigners. According to Wikipedia’s summary of the old Ghana Armed Forces history pages, a Flying Training School started on 24 July 1959 with Israeli instructors and technicians under Lieutenant Colonel Adam Shatkay of the Israeli Air Force, and the service was formally established days later; an Indian officer, Air Commodore K. Jaswant-Singh, set up headquarters in Accra as the first Chief of the Air Staff. Wikipedia’s article on Ghana–Israel relations puts the arrangement more bluntly: Israel, with help from India, supervised the creation of the air force from April 1959, until the British persuaded Kwame Nkrumah to send the Israeli advisers home in 1960. RAF personnel took over the training that year and a small Royal Canadian Air Force team followed in 1961. On 1 March 1961 the former RAF Station Takoradi became a Ghana Air Force station with Chipmunk trainers. Nkrumah also invited the German pilot Hanna Reitsch, who ran a national gliding school at Afienya from 1962 to 1966.

The jet era: MB-326, MB-339 and a short list of trainers

Nkrumah’s air force was mostly a transport and liaison service: Chipmunks for training, de Havilland Canada Beavers, Otters and Caribous, Doves and Herons, a DH.125 jet for the president, Westland Whirlwind helicopters and Hughes helicopters for mosquito control. The first combat-capable jets were Italian. Wikipedia records nine MB-326F two-seat trainers ordered in 1965, plus single-seat MB-326KG attack aircraft built for Ghana; its own operator list says 15 MB-326s were delivered in all. Four MB-339As followed later, according to the same encyclopedia, and the inventory history also names Czechoslovak L-29 and L-39 jets, Bulldog trainers, Islanders, Skyvans, Fokker F27s, Alouette IIIs, Bell 212s and Mi-2s. Delivery dates and numbers for most of these could not be confirmed from primary sources, and this page leaves them blank rather than guess. What is clear is the pattern: a few aircraft of many types, which is expensive to keep flying.

1979–1981: a flight lieutenant takes power

The air force’s best-known officer never commanded it. Jerry Rawlings joined after leaving Achimota in 1967, trained at Takoradi from March 1968 and was commissioned as a pilot officer in January 1969, winning the Speed Bird Trophy as best cadet, according to Wikipedia. As a flight lieutenant he led a failed mutiny against General Fred Akuffo’s government on 15 May 1979 and was sentenced to death by court martial; soldiers freed him on 4 June 1979 and installed him as chairman of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council. That council had three former heads of state — Acheampong, Akuffo and Afrifa — and other senior officers executed by firing squad, then handed power to President Hilla Limann on 24 September 1979. On 31 December 1981 Rawlings removed Limann and ruled through the Provisional National Defence Council until constitutional rule returned. Wikipedia’s list of chiefs of the air staff shows how unsettled those years were: six chiefs between 1976 and 1982.

1990–2016: ECOMOG, UN airlift and the Mahama re-equipment drive

When the ECOWAS Monitoring Group landed at Monrovia from Nigerian and Ghanaian ships on 24 August 1990 under the Ghanaian Lieutenant General Arnold Quainoo, Ghanaian aircraft went too: the New York Times reported on 17 September 1990 that Ghana was said to have struck Liberian rebels, as cited by Wikipedia. Peacekeeping later became a matter of airlift. Ghana took the first of its CASA C-295s in November 2011 and a second in April 2012; one flew for the UN mission in Mali from Bamako-Sénou from late September 2014, and defenceWeb reported similar UN air services in Côte d’Ivoire. President John Mahama then announced a re-equipment drive at Air Force Base Accra on 20 November 2014: four Z-9EH helicopters, paid for with a China Development Bank loan, were commissioned on 23 September 2015, a third C-295 arrived in February 2016, and four Mi-171Sh had joined the Mi-17V-5s delivered in December 2004. The four K-8 jet trainers had been bought from China under a 2005 agreement whose British broker was later convicted in the UK for brokering it without a licence.

Promises without aircraft: Super Tucano, L-39NG and pilots leaving

The attack aircraft have been harder. Embraer announced a contract for five A-29 Super Tucanos in June 2015; the deal depended on conditions that were never met. In December 2021 Parliament approved €111.4 million for six Aero L-39NG trainers and light combat jets, a plan defenceWeb says then stalled for lack of money. Meanwhile Parliament’s Defence and Interior Committee reported in December 2023 that trained pilots were leaving because there were too few aircraft to fly, and noted that air combat capability was needed to watch the country’s airspace. Embraer flew an A-29 for the Chief of the Air Staff and the defence minister at Accra on 19 February 2024, and Aero showed its L-39 Skyfox there in December 2025; neither has produced an order. defenceWeb’s 2026 profile sums it up: the government talks of better ground support capability, but little to no progress has been made.

2025–2026: the Z-9 crash, a grounded presidential jet and the Airbus order

On 6 August 2025 a Ghana Air Force Z-9 flying from Accra to Obuasi for an event against illegal mining crashed in the Adansi area of the Ashanti Region, killing all eight on board: the defence minister Edward Omane Boamah, the environment minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, three other officials and politicians, and the crew of Squadron Leader Peter Bafemi Anala, Flying Officer Manaen Twum-Ampadu and Sergeant Ernest Addo Mensah. Three months later the deputy defence minister said that many of the air force’s helicopters and jets were down, while the presidential Falcon 900EX spent eight months in France for repairs to a corroded fuel tank and engine defects. The government’s answer was a single package: in December 2025 Parliament was asked to approve about €126 million for four Airbus helicopters and US$60.7 million for a Dassault Falcon 6X. The first H175 landed at Accra on 5 March 2026. It is the first new type in a decade — but it is a transport, not the combat aircraft that every review since 2014 has asked for.

Nkrumah’s air force was mostly a transport and liaison service: Chipmunks for training, de Havilland Canada Beavers, Otters and Caribous, Doves and Herons, a DH.125 jet for the president, Westland Whirlwind helicopters and Hughes helicopters for mosquito control. The first combat-capable jets were Italian.Ghana Air Force · verified 2026-10-01
In één oogopslag

The Ghana Air Force in numbers

Dienst

Officiële naam
Ghanese luchtmachtEnglish is Ghana’s official language; the service uses the English name, abbreviated GHF to distinguish it from the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF). English Wikipedia titles its article "Ghana Air Force"
Opgericht
July 1959Wikipedia gives 24 July 1959 for the start of the Flying Training School and 29 July 1959 for the formal establishment; its article on Ghana–Israel relations dates Israeli supervision of the new air force from April 1959
Onderdeel van
Ghana Armed ForcesOne of three services with the Ghana Army and Ghana Navy; Janes and defenceWeb report that the army and navy operate no aircraft of their own. The air force shares the rotating ceremonial guard at the Presidency, most recently taking over at Jubilee House on 14 September 2026
Hoofdkwartier
Burma Camp, AccraThe Accra station moved from No. 3 hangar at Accra airport to Burma Camp towards the end of 1965
Founding help
Israel, India, Britain, CanadaIsraeli instructors and an Indian first chief in 1959; RAF from 1960, a Canadian team from 1961. Nkrumah also brought in the German glider pilot Hanna Reitsch (1962–1966). The air force’s most famous officer, Flt Lt Jerry Rawlings, led the 1979 and 1981 seizures of power
Chef van de Luchtmachtstaf
AVM Eric Agyen-FrempongAppointed by President John Mahama on 24 March 2025
Chief of the Defence Staff
Lt Gen William AgyapongAppointed on 24 March 2025
Minister van Defensie
Dr Cassiel Ato Forson (acting, March 2026)Acting minister after Edward Omane Boamah was killed in the Z-9 crash of 6 August 2025; Ernest Brogya Genfi is deputy minister. Whether the acting arrangement still applied in October 2026 was not confirmed

Kracht

Personeel
Ongeveer 2.000defenceWeb’s estimate; the Ghana Armed Forces as a whole are put at 16,000–20,000 active personnel by defenceWeb and 15,500 by Wikipedia. No official air force headcount was found
Combat-capable aircraft
  • Hongdu K-8 Karakorum — 4

Jet trainers with a light attack capability; defenceWeb calls them combat capable. No other armed fixed-wing aircraft are in service; the Super Tucano and L-39NG purchases have not materialised

Vervoer en VIP-service
  • CASA C-295 — 2–3
  • Diamond DA42 — 3–4
  • Dassault Falcon 900EX — 1
  • Fokker F28 — 1, probably stored

Wikipedia counts two C-295s and three DA42s; defenceWeb’s 2026 profile lists three and four. The third C-295 was damaged in a ground overrun in January 2020

Helikopters
  • Mil Mi-17V-5 and Mi-171Sh — 5
  • Harbin Z-9EH — 3
  • Airbus H175 — 1 (more on order)
  • Bel 412 — 1

Mi and Z-9 figures from defenceWeb (2026); the Bell 412 from Wikipedia only

Trainers
  • Cessna 172 — 0–3
  • Diamond DA42 (multi-engine) — 1

defenceWeb lists three Cessna 172s in service; Wikipedia lists the type as retired

Defensiebudget
GH₵3.8 billion (2024, Ministry of Defence)Approved by Parliament in December 2023. Wikipedia gives US$360 million, 0.4 per cent of GDP, for 2019

Infrastructuur

Luchtbases
  • Accra — headquarters, transport, helicopters
  • Takoradi — Training Command and recruit school
  • Tamale
  • Bui

defenceWeb’s list. Accra and Tamale share their runways with the civil airports

Vliegende eenheden
  • No. 3 Squadron — helicopters
  • No. 4 Squadron — surveillance and ground attack
  • Communication Squadron — transport and VIP
  • Twee transporteskaders
  • A training squadron

As listed by defenceWeb; Ghana does not publish a squadron order of battle

Opleiding
Air Force Training Command, TakoradiThe Air Force Recruit Training School at Takoradi passed out 293 recruits on 25 September 2026 after 26 weeks. A flying school at Tamale was announced in 2014; no opening was found. Air traffic controllers train abroad (eight officers at ATNS in South Africa, 2023–2024) and US Air Forces Africa has trained Ghanaian aeromedical evacuation instructors for UN missions (2022, 2024)
Zoek- en reddingsactie
Coordinator for the Accra FIRThe air force coordinates and directs search and rescue in the Accra Flight Information Region
Onderhoud
In het buitenlandMi-8/17 overhauls by LOM Praha in the Czech Republic (2019, 2020); the Falcon 900EX by Dassault at Le Bourget (2025)
Structuur

How the Ghana Air Force is organised

One of the three services of the Ghana Armed Forces, and the only one with aircraft according to Janes and defenceWeb, commanded from Burma Camp in Accra by Air Vice Marshal Eric Agyen-Frempong since 24 March 2025, with about 2,000 people by defenceWeb’s estimate. Its only armed jets are four K-8 trainers; the rest of the fleet is transports and helicopters, from two or three C-295s to Mi-17s, three Z-9EHs and the first of four Airbus helicopters ordered in January 2026. Ghana does not publish a squadron order of battle; defenceWeb lists No. 3 Squadron for helicopters, No. 4 Squadron for surveillance and ground attack, a Communication Squadron, two transport squadrons and a training squadron.

EA

LuchtmachtgeneraalEric Agyen-FrempongChef van de luchtmachtstaf · in functie sinds 2025
Ghanese luchtmacht
Hoofdkwartier

Ghana Air Force Headquarters

Burma Camp, Accra

One of the three services of the Ghana Armed Forces, with the Ghana Army and the Ghana Navy, which Janes and defenceWeb report operate no aircraft of their own. President John Mahama named Air Vice Marshal Eric Agyen-Frempong Chief of the Air Staff on 24 March 2025, succeeding Air Vice Marshal Frederick Asare Bekoe, with Lt Gen William Agyapong as Chief of the Defence Staff. The headquarters moved from No. 3 hangar at Accra airport to Burma Camp towards the end of 1965.

Vervoer

Transport and Communication Squadrons

Accra

defenceWeb lists a Communication Squadron for transport and VIP flying, with the C-295M, the Fokker F28, probably stored, and the presidential Falcon 900EX, beside two transport squadrons. Wikipedia places one C-295 squadron at Air Force Base Accra; two or three of the three C-295s delivered from November 2011 are in service, and one flew for the UN mission in Mali from Bamako from late September 2014. A Falcon 6X was put before Parliament in December 2025.

Helikopters

Helikoptereskaders

Accra and Takoradi

defenceWeb names the helicopter unit No. 3 Squadron without giving its base. Wikipedia places a helicopter squadron with Z-9s and Mi-17s at Accra, where the first of four Airbus helicopters ordered on 15 January 2026, an H175, landed on 5 March 2026, and names a 1 Squadron with Z-9s at Takoradi. Five Mi-17V-5 and Mi-171Sh and three Z-9EH remain after the Z-9 crash of 6 August 2025, according to defenceWeb.

Frontlinie

Squadron nr. 4

Listed by defenceWeb for surveillance and ground attack, with the four K-8 jet trainers, Ghana’s only armed jets, and the DA42 surveillance aircraft; its base is not published. K-8s flew at Air Force Base Accra during the Super Tucano demonstration of 19 February 2024. Neither the Super Tucano nor the six L-39NGs approved by Parliament in December 2021 has been bought.

Opleiding

Air Force Training Command

Takoradi

Commanded by Air Commodore Richard Danso, who reviewed the passing-out of 293 recruits from the Air Force Recruit Training School after 26 weeks on 25 September 2026. Wikipedia lists a Flight Training School with DA42s at the base, which has trained Ghanaian pilots since it became a Ghana Air Force station flying Chipmunks on 1 March 1961.

In dienst

What the Ghana Air Force flies today

Elk type is gekoppeld aan de bijbehorende pagina in het Boek der Beesten, indien aanwezig. Het aantal vliegtuigen betreft de geregistreerde vliegtuigen, niet de vliegtuigen die op een bepaalde dag beschikbaar zijn.

Type Rol In dienst Sinds Eenheden Notities
Hongdu K-8 KarakorumIn dienst Straaljager voor training en lichte aanvalsvliegtuigen 4 Four, per defenceWeb (2026) and Wikipedia.
Airbus (CASA) C-295MIn dienst Tactisch transport 2011 2–3. Three delivered (November 2011, April 2012, February 2016); Wikipedia counts two in service, defenceWeb’s 2026 profile three.
Diamant DA42In dienst Maritime surveillance, reconnaissance and multi-engine training 3–4. Wikipedia: two for surveillance and one trainer; defenceWeb: four.
Dassault Falcon 900EXIn dienst Presidentieel transport 1 Een.
Fokker F28-beursIn dienst VIP-vervoer 1 One, described by defenceWeb as likely in storage.
Mil Mi-17V-5 and Mi-171ShIn dienst Transporthelikopter 5 2005 Five in 2026 (defenceWeb). Four Mi-17V-5 arrived in December 2004 and four Mi-171Sh in 2013; President Mahama spoke of ten Mi-17s in November 2014.
Harbin Z-9EHIn dienst Utility and maritime helicopter 3 2015 Three; four were delivered and one was lost on 6 August 2025.
Airbus Helicopters H175In dienst Transport, SAR and VIP helicopter 1 2026 One of three H175s delivered by October 2026 as far as found.
Bell 412In dienst Hulphelikopter 1 Volgens Wikipedia is dat er maar één.
Cessna 172In dienst Basistrainer 0–3: defenceWeb lists three in service, Wikipedia lists the type as retired.
Mi-175
K-84
Z-93
Falcon 900EX1
F281
H1751
Bell 4121

Op bestelling

Type Besteld Eerste levering Notities
Airbus Helicopters H175M and ACH160Op bestelling 3 2026 Ordered on 15 January 2026 with one ACH175 (two H175M, one ACH175, one ACH160); Parliament had been asked in December 2025 to approve €125.97 million for the four.

Meer

One H175 arrived on 5 March 2026; the remaining delivery dates were not published. Parliament’s committee spoke of deliveries over four years from 2026.
Dassault Falcon 6XOp bestelling 1 US$60.68 million contract laid before Parliament on 3 December 2025. Wikipedia lists it as on order; defenceWeb’s 2026 profile lists one in the fleet.

Meer

Mil Mi-35Op bestelling 1 The Chief of the Air Staff said in January 2016 that one was being acquired; Wikipedia still lists one on order. No delivery was found.
Aero L-39NGOp bestelling 6 Parliament approved €111.4 million for six in December 2021; defenceWeb reported in January 2026 that the plan had stalled for lack of funding. Not a live order in practice.
Voorheen in bedrijf

Every type the Ghana Air Force has retired

15 types, from the de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk to the de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk. De piekcijfers hebben betrekking op het aantal vliegtuigen dat gedurende de gehele levensduur in gebruik is genomen, niet op de vlootsterkte op een bepaalde datum.

Type Rol Piek Geserveerd Vervangen door Notities
de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk Basistrainer 1961– Niet gevonden.
de Havilland Canada Beaver, Otter and Caribou Light and tactical transport Niet gevonden.
de Havilland Duif, Reiger en DH.125 Communications and VIP transport Niet gevonden.
Westland Whirlwind and Wessex Helikopter Niet gevonden.
Hughes light helicopters Utility helicopter (mosquito control) Niet gevonden.
Aermacchi MB-326F en MB-326KG Jet trainer and ground attack 13–15. Wikipedia lists nine MB-326F two-seaters and four single-seat MB-326KGs built for Ghana, and separately says Ghana received 15 MB-326s.
Aermacchi MB-339A Straaljager voor training en lichte aanvalsvliegtuigen 4 K-8 Four delivered.
Aero L-29 Delfín Straaltrainer Niet gevonden.
Aero L-39ZO Albatros Straaltrainer Niet gevonden.
Scottish Aviation Bulldog en HAL HT-2 Basistrainer Niet gevonden.
Fokker F27 Friendship Vervoer Niet gevonden.
Short Skyvan, Britten-Norman Islander en Beagle Husky Licht vervoer en verbinding Niet gevonden.
Aérospatiale Alouette III Lichte helikopter Niet gevonden.
Bel 212 Hulphelikopter Niet gevonden.
PZL Mil Mi-2 Lichte helikopter Niet gevonden.
Luchtbases

Where the Ghana Air Force flies from

Black pins are active bases; the gliding school at Afienya, run from 1962 to 1966, is listed for its history and the tactical air base reported under construction at Jogboi as planned. The air force flies from four bases by defenceWeb’s count: Accra, its main base beside the headquarters at Burma Camp; Takoradi, a wartime RAF ferry base and its first station from 1961; Tamale in the north; and Bui, about which nothing more was found. Accra and Tamale share their runways with civil airports. Coordinates are from English Wikipedia because the Ghana AIP could not be reached; Bui, Jogboi and Afienya carry no pin.

Actieve luchtmachtbasis Gesloten of reserverenKlik op een speld om de basispagina te openen.
Baseren ICAO Status Startbaan Eenheden en vliegtuigen
Luchtmachtbasis AccraGrotere Accra-regio DGAA Actief 03/213,403 m
Air Force Base BuiBui area (the Bui Dam lies on the border of the Savannah and Bono regions) Actief
Luchtmachtbasis TakoradiWestelijke regio DGTK Actief 03/211,751 m
  • Air Force Training Command (AFTRAC)
  • Air Force Recruit Training School
  • Vliegopleidingsschool: Diamond DA42, de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk (from 1961; retired)
  • Helicopter squadron (Z-9): Harbin Z-9EH
  • RAF Takoradi (aircraft assembly and ferry base): Hawker-orkaan, Bristol Blenheim IV, Supermarine Spitfire
  • No. 26 Squadron, South African Air Force: Vickers Wellington
Air Force Base TamaleNorthern Region DGLE Actief 05/23- M
  • Helicopter detachment: Harbin Z-9EH
Jogboi tactical air baseplannedNorthern Ghana (region not stated in the source) Gesloten

Geen enkele luchtmachtbasis voldoet aan die zoekopdracht.

Slagorde

Who is stationed where in the Ghana Air Force

Vliegende eenheden per basis, met de huidige eenheden eerst. Ghana does not publish squadron numbers, and its sources disagree: Wikipedia names a 1 Squadron with Z-9s at Takoradi, while defenceWeb calls the helicopter unit No. 3 Squadron and gives no base. The RAF ferry organisation and the South African Wellington squadron that flew from Takoradi in the Second World War are listed and marked as not Ghanaian. Where a unit’s base or number rests on one source, the entry says so.

Luchtmachtbasis Accra · DGAAAir Force Base Accra, Ghana Air Force
Transport squadron (C295)Transporteskader · actief
Airbus (CASA) C295M
HelikoptereskaderHelikoptereskader · actief
Mil Mi-17V-5 and Mi-171Sh, Harbin Z-9EH, Airbus H175 (from March 2026)
K-8 jet trainersJet trainer and light attack · active
Hongdu K-8 Karakorum
Luchtmachtbasis Takoradi · DGTKAir Force Base Takoradi, Ghana Air Force
Air Force Training Command (AFTRAC)Training command · active
Air Force Recruit Training SchoolRecruit school · active
VliegopleidingsschoolVliegopleiding · actief
Diamond DA42, de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk (from 1961; retired)
Helicopter squadron (Z-9)Helikoptereskader · actief
Harbin Z-9EH
RAF Takoradi (aircraft assembly and ferry base)1940–
Hawker Hurricane, Bristol Blenheim IV, Supermarine Spitfire
No. 26 Squadron, South African Air Force
Vickers Wellington
Air Force Base Tamale · DGLEAir Force Base Tamale, Ghana Air Force
Helicopter detachmentHelikopterdetachement · actief
Harbin Z-9EH

Geen enkel apparaat voldoet aan die zoekopdracht.

Tijdlijn

Ghana Air Force milestones, 1914 to today

1959

April: Israel, with Indian help, begins supervising the creation of an air force (Wikipedia). 24 July: the Flying Training School opens under Lt Col Adam Shatkay of the Israeli Air Force; Air Commodore K. Jaswant-Singh of India becomes the first Chief of the Air Staff.

1960

Nkrumah withdraws the Israeli advisers under British pressure; the RAF takes over training.

1961

A Royal Canadian Air Force team joins. 1 March: RAF Station Takoradi becomes a Ghana Air Force station, flying Chipmunks.

1962

Hanna Reitsch founds the national gliding school at Afienya, which she runs until 1966. J. E. S. de Graft-Hayford becomes the first Ghanaian Chief of the Air Staff (Wikipedia gives both 1961 and 1962).

1965

Nine MB-326F jet trainers ordered from Italy (Wikipedia, uncited). Late in the year the Accra station moves to Burma Camp.

1979

15 May: Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings leads a failed mutiny; 4 June: freed by soldiers, he heads the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council, which hands over to President Limann on 24 September.

1981

31 December: Rawlings takes power again and forms the Provisional National Defence Council.

1990

24 August: ECOMOG lands at Monrovia under Ghana’s Lt Gen Arnold Quainoo. In September the New York Times reports Ghanaian air strikes on Liberian rebels.

2004

December: four Mi-17V-5 helicopters arrive; they are commissioned in January 2005.

2005

June: agreement for four K-8 jet trainers from China; two are delivered before February 2007.

2011

November: the first CASA C-295 arrives; the second follows in April 2012.

2013

Four Mi-171Sh helicopters delivered; Ghana offers C-295s to the UN.

2014

Late September: a C-295 deploys to Bamako for MINUSMA. 20 November: President Mahama announces Super Tucanos, Z-9s, Mi-17s and a third C-295.

2015

June: Embraer announces a contract for five A-29 Super Tucanos, never completed. 23 September: four Z-9EH helicopters commissioned.

2021

December: Parliament approves €111.4 million for six L-39NGs; the purchase later stalls.

2025

24 March: Air Vice Marshal Eric Agyen-Frempong becomes Chief of the Air Staff. 6 August: a Z-9 crashes in the Ashanti Region, killing eight, including two ministers.

2026

15 January: four Airbus helicopters ordered. 5 March: the first H175 arrives at Accra.

Gevechtsgeschiedenis

Every war the Ghana Air Force has fought

Uitvallen en verliezen waar de gegevens die vermelden, en een eerlijke blanco waar die ontbreken.

3conflicten
1990Eerst
0Vliegtuig verloren
0Gedood
  • ECOMOG intervention in the First Liberian Civil War 1990 Supported the ECOWAS Monitoring Group; Ghanaian aircraft were reported to have struck rebel targets
  • UN airlift in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) by 2014 Flew UN air services for the UN Operation in Côte d’Ivoire
  • UN airlift in Mali (MINUSMA) 2014– One C-295 flew passengers and cargo within Mali for the UN mission

Bekijk het volledige gevechtsverslag

De fabrikanten

Who built the Ghana Air Force fleet

Elk bedrijf dat betrokken is bij de vliegtuigen op deze pagina heeft zijn eigen pagina: het verhaal, elk type dat het heeft gebouwd, de aantallen en de andere luchtmachten die ermee vliegen.

Vragen en antwoorden

Everything people ask about the Ghana Air Force

What is the Ghana Air Force called officially?
Simply the Ghana Air Force: English is Ghana’s official language, and that is the name used by the Ghana Armed Forces and by the current English Wikipedia article. Its aircraft carry the code GHF, which also distinguishes the air force from the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) as a whole.
What aircraft does the Ghana Air Force fly in 2026?
Vier K-8 Karakorum jet trainers, two or three CASA C-295 transports, DA42 surveillance aircraft, a Falcon 900EX presidential jet, five Mi-17-family helicopters, three Z-9EH helicopters and, since March 2026, an Airbus H175, according to defenceWeb and Wikipedia. More H175s, an ACH160 and a Falcon 6X are on order.
Does Ghana have fighter jets?
No. Its only armed jets are four Chinese K-8 trainers with a light attack capability. Earlier it flew Italian MB-326 En MB-339 jets. Five A-29 Super Tucanos announced in 2015 and six L-39NGs approved by Parliament in 2021 were never delivered, and in December 2023 a parliamentary committee warned that pilots were leaving for lack of aircraft.
Who helped found the Ghana Air Force?
Israel and India. Israeli instructors under Lt Col Adam Shatkay ran the Flying Training School that opened on 24 July 1959, and India’s Air Commodore K. Jaswant-Singh was the first Chief of the Air Staff. The British persuaded Nkrumah to remove the Israelis in 1960, after which the RAF and, from 1961, a Canadian team took over training.
Who commands the Ghana Air Force?
Air Vice Marshal Eric Agyen-Frempong, appointed Chief of the Air Staff by President John Mahama on 24 March 2025, as reported by the Daily Graphic. He reports to the Chief of the Defence Staff, Lieutenant General William Agyapong.
What happened in the Ghana Air Force helicopter crash of August 2025?
On 6 August 2025 a Z-9 flying from Accra to Obuasi crashed in the Adansi area of the Ashanti Region, killing all eight on board: the defence minister Edward Omane Boamah, the environment minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, three other passengers and the three crew. The government called it a national tragedy; a state funeral was held in Accra on 15 August. No published cause was found in the sources checked.
Was Jerry Rawlings a Ghana Air Force pilot?
Yes. He was commissioned as a pilot officer in January 1969 after training at Takoradi, and was a flight lieutenant when he led the failed mutiny of 15 May 1979. Freed by soldiers on 4 June 1979, he headed the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council, handed over to an elected government in September 1979, and took power again on 31 December 1981.
Did Hitler’s test pilot Hanna Reitsch work for Ghana?
Yes. Nkrumah invited her, and from 1962 to 1966 she ran Ghana’s national gliding school at Afienya, which was commanded by Air Commodore J. E. S. de Graft-Hayford. Wikipedia’s Ghana Air Force article also says she flew Nkrumah personally.
Did the Ghana Air Force fight in Liberia?
It supported the ECOMOG intervention of 1990, which was commanded by Ghana’s Lt Gen Arnold Quainoo, and the New York Times reported in September 1990 that Ghana had struck Liberian rebels. Details of the aircraft and missions were not found.
What new aircraft is Ghana buying?
Two H175Ms, one ACH175 and one ACH160 from Airbus, ordered on 15 January 2026 (Parliament was asked for about €126 million), and a Dassault Falcon 6X for US$60.68 million. The first H175 arrived on 5 March 2026. Embraer said in June 2026 it was still ready to sell Ghana the Super Tucano, but no light attack aircraft has been ordered.

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Cijfers geverifieerd op 1 oktober 2026. De pagina's van Order of Battle worden opnieuw gegenereerd vanuit één dataset; als een getal hier niet overeenkomt met een pagina in Book of Beasts, is deze pagina de meest recente van de twee.

Photographs: Photo: Xanderix / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0) · Photo: Md Shaifuzzaman Ayon / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Anil Öztas / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Kecko / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0) · Photo: Bob Adams from George, South Africa / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0) · Photo: LudwigJoelAdjete / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Carlos E. Perez S.L / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Md Shaifuzzaman / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Bidgee / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 au) · Photo: Anidaat / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Just a Man / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0) · Photo: Photographer: Mosbatho / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0) · Photo: Ank Kumar / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Hans Hillewaert / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Łukasz Golowanow and Maciek Hypś, Konflikty.pl / Wikimedia Commons (Attribution)