Força Aérea do Zimbábue
The Air Force of Zimbabwe was formed at independence in 1980 from the Rhodesian Air Force, fought in Mozambique and the Congo, and since the 2002 sanctions has kept a small fleet of Chinese F-7s and K-8s and a few restored British Hawks flying with growing difficulty.
The Air Force of Zimbabwe story: an Empire training ground, the Bush War, the Congo and Chinese jets under sanctions
1935–1945: a colonial air unit and a training ground for the Empire
The Air Force of Zimbabwe traces its line to an Air Section of the 1st Battalion, Rhodesia Regiment, formed in 1935–36 in the self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia. The first pilots won their wings on 13 May 1938 and the Southern Rhodesia Air Force was formed on 19 September 1939. In April 1940 it was absorbed into the Royal Air Force as No. 237 (Rhodesia) Squadron and fought in East Africa; Nos. 44 and 266 Squadrons RAF carried the title "(Rhodesia)" because so many of their men came from the colony. Wikipedia’s figure is that one in five Rhodesian airmen was killed. The colony’s bigger contribution was on the ground: the Rhodesian Air Training Group, whose stations included Thornhill near Gweru (training from March 1942), trained about 10,000 Commonwealth and Allied aircrew between 1940 and 1945.
1947–1979: from the Royal Rhodesian Air Force to the Bush War
The air force was re-formed in 1947 with 22 surplus Spitfire F.22s, then 16 Vampire FB.9s and Canberra bombers. It became the Royal Rhodesian Air Force in 1954, during the Federation, and took Hunters and Alouette III helicopters from 1962. After the white-minority government’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965 sanctions cut off new aircraft, and it bought what it could: Cessna 337 Lynx, SF.260s and, through Israel, 11 Agusta-Bell 205s. Renamed the Rhodesian Air Force in 1970, it was at the centre of the Bush War against the ZANLA and ZIPRA guerrilla armies, with no more than about 2,300 people and 150 pilots. Its Fireforce helicopters and its raids into Mozambique and Zambia, among them the October 1978 attack on Westlands Farm near Lusaka, are counted as successes by Rhodesian accounts and as attacks on refugee camps by ZAPU; the claims of both sides are given below.
1980–1997: a new air force, Hawks, sabotage and Chinese fighters
Zimbabwe became independent on 18 April 1980 and the service was reconstituted as the Air Force of Zimbabwe. Pakistan trained most of the new pilots, helped rebuild Thornhill and lent Air Marshal Azim Daudpota as Chief of Air Staff from 1983 to 1986, and Nigeria also trained early pilots. Eight BAE Hawk T.60s ordered in 1981 arrived in July 1982. On the night of 25 July 1982 saboteurs at Thornhill damaged four Hawks, nine Hunters and a Lynx; one Hawk was written off. From 1986 the AFZ turned to China for its first supersonic fighters, 12 F-7s, and Josiah Tungamirai, a former ZANLA political commissar, took command. From 1982 the AFZ supported Zimbabwean troops guarding the Beira corridor in Mozambique’s civil war against RENAMO.
1998–2002: the Congo war
In August 1998 President Robert Mugabe sent forces to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, under a SADC mandate, to defend Laurent Kabila’s government against a Rwandan- and Ugandan-backed rebellion. The army contingent grew from 600–1,000 to about 12,000 by January 2001. The AFZ sent Hawks, F-7s, Hunters, C-212s, Islanders, Alouettes, AB412s and newly bought Mi-35s. Its first recorded action, on 26 August 1998, was against a rebel column approaching Kinshasa. Losses are not officially published: Wikipedia’s accounts give three of six Mi-24/35s, a transport and probably an F-7, and estimates of four Hawks and three F-7s. In January 2001 three of five F-7s sent to Kinshasa for Kabila’s funeral fly-past crashed, accidents blamed on low flying hours. Zimbabwe spent 166 million US dollars on the war in January–June 2000 alone and withdrew by the end of 2002.
2002–2026: sanctions, Chinese trainers and a shrinking fleet
In February–March 2002 the European Union and the United States imposed sanctions over human rights violations, and spares for the British Hawks dried up. In 2014 the commander of 22 years, Air Marshal Perence Shiri, said the sanctions had not spared the air force, and defenceWeb reported most Hawks grounded. The answer was Chinese: 12 K-8 jet trainers in 2006. Shiri retired in December 2017 and was followed by Elson Moyo and, on 15 March 2024, by Air Marshal John Jacob Nzvede. FlightGlobal’s 2026 count, as tabulated on Wikipedia, is about 80 aircraft, including nine F-7s, 12 K-8s, four Hawks restored to service since 2019, six Mi-35s and 12 Super Mushshaks on order from Pakistan. Fatal crashes of a K-8 in February 2025 and an F-7 in May 2025 show the strain of flying a small, ageing fleet.
The Air Force of Zimbabwe in numbers
Serviço
- Nome oficial
- Força Aérea do ZimbábueEnglish is the language of the defence forces; the abbreviation is AFZ. Wikipedia’s article has the same title
- Fundada
- 1980Reconstituted from the Rhodesian Air Force at independence on 18 April 1980. The lineage runs from the Southern Rhodesia Air Force of 19 September 1939 and an army air section of 1935–36
- Parte de
- Zimbabwe Defence ForcesOne of the two ZDF services with the Zimbabwe National Army; the ZDF commander is Gen Emmanuel Matatu (from November 2025, according to Wikipedia)
- Comandante
- Air Marshal John Jacob NzvedeInvested on 15 March 2024 in Harare
- Lema
- Alæ Præsidio PatriæLatin, translated by Wikipedia as "Our wings are the fortress of the nation"
- Ministro da Defesa
- Oppah MuchinguriAs given on Wikipedia in October 2026
Força
- Pessoal
- About 5,000 (1999)No recent official figure. The whole ZDF has about 29,000 active personnel and 21,800 paramilitaries (defenceWeb 2026, IISS figures)
- Total de aeronaves
- About 80FlightGlobal World Air Forces 2026, as tabulated on Wikipedia; serviceability is not published and defenceWeb reported most Hawks grounded in 2014
- Combat and attack aircraft
-
- Chengdu F-7 — 9
- SF.260 — 9 light attack, plus 6 trainers
- Mi-35 — 6 attack helicopters
Fleet counts are FlightGlobal 2026 via Wikipedia; the F-7 count includes two-seaters
- Jet trainers
-
- K-8 — 12
- BAE Hawk T.60/60A — 4 (restored 2019–2023)
One K-8 crashed on 6 February 2025, after the count was compiled
- Transporte e helicópteros
-
- CASA C-212 — 9
- BN-2A Islander — 5
- Alouette III — 13
- AB412 — 8
- Mi-172 — 1
Plus a VIP EC225 whose current status is not confirmed
- Sob encomenda
- 12 Super Mushshak trainersFrom Pakistan; reported in May 2024, no delivery schedule published
Infraestrutura
- Principais bases aéreas
-
- Josiah Tungamirai Air Force Base (formerly Thornhill), Gweru — jet training, F-7, SF.260
- New Sarum, Harare — transport and helicopters
Thornhill was renamed under Statutory Instrument 138 of 2017
- esquadrões voadores
- 8 numbered, 6 activeNos. 1 and 4 inactive after the Hunter and Lynx were retired, according to Wikipedia’s squadron table; the Thornhill article still lists No. 4 with Cessna trainers
- Other airfield
- Charles Prince Airport, HarareNamed by Wikipedia as a training site
- Next major exercise
- SADC blue air exercise, 2027Zimbabwe is to host it, the AFZ chief said in September 2025
How the Air Force of Zimbabwe is organised
One of the two services of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, with its headquarters in Harare and six active numbered squadrons at two main bases, Gweru and Manyame. The front line is nine Chengdu F-7s of No. 5 Squadron at Gweru, a figure that includes two-seaters, backed by 12 K-8 and four restored Hawk jet trainers; FlightGlobal’s 2026 count, as tabulated on Wikipedia, is about 80 aircraft in all. How many are airworthy is not published, and 12 Super Mushshak trainers are on order from Pakistan.
Força Aérea do Zimbábue
One of the two services of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, with the Zimbabwe National Army, headquartered in Harare. Air Marshal John Jacob Nzvede was invested as commander on 15 March 2024, succeeding Air Marshal Elson Moyo; NewZimbabwe reported that Moyo was forced to retire after an airport bomb scare, which was not officially confirmed. Wikipedia counts eight numbered squadrons, six of them active.
Esquadrão nº 5
The AFZ’s only fighter squadron, flying the Chengdu F-7 since 1986: FlightGlobal’s 2026 count, as tabulated on Wikipedia, is nine, including two-seaters. At least four have been lost in accidents, the latest at the end of May 2025, and in March 2023 the commander asked the Nigerian Air Force for help keeping them flying.
Nos. 2 and 6 Squadrons
No. 2 Squadron flies the 12 K-8s that arrived from China in 2006 and the four Hawks restored to service since 2019; one of its K-8s crashed near Guinea Fowl on 6 February 2025. No. 6 Squadron teaches basic flying on the SF.260, nine of them in the light attack role. Twelve Super Mushshak trainers are on order from Pakistan, with no delivery schedule published.
Esquadrão nº 3
Nine CASA C-212s and five Britten-Norman Islanders, according to the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia; in the Bush War the same squadron flew C-47 Dakotas from New Sarum. A C-212 joined the SADC Blue Lugwasho drought-relief airlift in Zambia in September 2025.
Nos. 7 and 8 Squadrons
No. 7 Squadron, the Rhodesian Fireforce squadron, flies 13 Alouette IIIs and six Mi-35 attack helicopters; No. 8 Squadron flies eight AB412s and a Mi-172. An AB412 crashed into a house near Harare in April 2021, killing four, among them the AFZ’s first female helicopter pilot.
What the Air Force of Zimbabwe flies today
Cada tipo de cobrança, com link para sua página no Livro das Feras, quando houver. Os números indicam as aeronaves registradas, não as aeronaves disponíveis em um determinado dia.
| Tipo | Papel | Em serviço | Desde | Unidades | Notas | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chengdu F-7II/IIN and FT-7 (J-7 export)Em serviço | Lutador | 9 | 1986 | FlightGlobal World Air Forces 2026, as tabulated on Wikipedia, gives nine, a figure that includes two FT-7 two-seaters (the same table also lists the two FT-7s on a separate line).
Mais12 were delivered in 1986. At least four have been lost in accidents: three during the January 2001 Kabila funeral flight and one in May 2025. |
||
| Hongdu K-8 Karakorum (K-8E)Em serviço | Jato de treinamento e ataque leve | 12 | 2006 | 12 received from China in 2006 (defenceWeb). FlightGlobal 2026 via Wikipedia still lists 12, but one was destroyed on 6 February 2025, so the flying number is probably 11 or fewer. | ||
| BAE Hawk T.60/T.60AEm serviço | Treinador avançado e ataque leve | 4 | 1982 | Four in 2026 according to the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia, after one was returned to service in 2019 and more between 2022 and 2023.
MaisEight were ordered in 1981; the Wikipedia DRC account says 12 Hawks took part there. The 2014 defenceWeb report said most were grounded. |
||
| SIAI-Marchetti SF.260Em serviço | Treinador básico e ataque leve | 15 | Nine in the light attack role plus six trainers, according to the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia.
MaisFatal SF.260 crashes were reported in September 2014, December 2020 and September 2025. |
|||
| Mil Mi-35 / Mi-24 (Hind)Em serviço | Helicóptero de ataque | 6 | 1998 | Six in 2026 according to the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia.
MaisThe Wikipedia Second Congo War article says three of six were lost in the DRC; defenceWeb in 2014 listed both Mi-24V and Mi-35. |
||
| Mil Mi-172 / Mi-8Em serviço | helicóptero de transporte | 1 | One Mi-172 in the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia; defenceWeb listed an Mi-8 in 2014. | |||
| Agusta-Bell AB412Em serviço | helicóptero utilitário | 8 | Eight according to the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia. | |||
| Aérospatiale SA316B Alouette IIIEm serviço | helicóptero utilitário leve | 13 | 13 according to the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia. | |||
| Airbus Helicopters EC225 Super PumaEm serviço | VIP helicopter | 2021 | Number not confirmed. Wikipedia cites HeliHub for a delivery in April 2021 and records an EC225 destroyed on 15 September 2024; whether any remain is not confirmed. | |||
| CASA C-212 AviocarEm serviço | Transporte leve | 9 | Nine according to the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia. | |||
| Britten-Norman BN-2A IslanderEm serviço | Light utility transport | 5 | Five according to the FlightGlobal-based table on Wikipedia; six were used in the DRC. |
Sob encomenda
| Tipo | Encomendado | Primeira entrega | Notas | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PAC MFI-395 Super MushshakSob encomenda | 12 | Reported in May 2024 by the EurAsian Times, which traced the deal to the IDEAS 2022 exhibition in Karachi; Wikipedia lists 12 on order. No delivery schedule or contract value was published. |
Every type the Air Force of Zimbabwe has retired
10 types, from the Hawker Hunter FGA.9 to the Hawker Hunter FGA.9. Os números máximos representam as aeronaves incorporadas à frota ao longo de toda a sua vida útil, e não a força total da frota em uma data específica.
| Tipo | Papel | Pico | Servido | Substituído por | Notas | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawker Hunter FGA.9 | Caça-bombardeiro | 1962– | F-7 | Rhodesian numbers not confirmed. Nine were damaged in the 1982 Thornhill sabotage. | ||
| English Electric Canberra | Bombardeiro e reconhecimento | 16 | 16 according to the Wikipedia Rhodesian Air Force article. | |||
| de Havilland Vampire FB.9 | Caça-bombardeiro e treinador | 16 | 16 FB.9s according to Wikipedia; trainer numbers not confirmed. | |||
| Supermarine Spitfire F.22 | Lutador | 22 | Vampiro | 22 surplus Mk 22s according to Wikipedia. | ||
| Reims-Cessna FTB337G Lynx | Counter-insurgency and observation | |||||
| Agusta-Bell 205 (UH-1) | helicóptero utilitário | 11 | 11 according to Wikipedia, originally obtained via Israel. | |||
| Douglas C-47 Dakota | Transport and electronic intelligence | CASA C-212 | ||||
| Aermacchi AL-60 Trojan | Ligação | |||||
| Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23 | Lutador | |||||
| Shenyang FT-5 | Treinador a jato | K-8 |
Where the Air Force of Zimbabwe flies from
Os pinos pretos indicam bases ativas; nenhum dos aeródromos listados foi fechado. Both main bases date from the colonial era: Josiah Tungamirai Air Force Base at Gweru, the former Thornhill, began as a Royal Air Force training station in 1942, and Manyame, the former New Sarum, opened in 1952 and shares its runway with Harare’s international airport. Charles Prince Airport is a civil field the AFZ uses for training, and Buffalo Range near Chiredzi, a Bush War forward airfield, is a joint civil and military airfield. Jason Ziyapapa Moyo Air Force Base near Chegutu has no published aerodrome data and carries no pin.
| Base | OACI | Status | Pista | Unidades e aeronaves |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Range Airport (Forward 7), ChiredziMasvingo Province, near Chiredzi | FVCZ | Ativo | 14/321,763 mbetume | |
| Aeroporto Charles Prince (Mount Hampden), HarareNorth-west of Harare | FVCP | Ativo | 06/241.200 m14/32925 m |
|
| Base da Força Aérea Jason Ziyapapa Moyo (Fylde), ChegutuMashonaland West Province, near Chegutu | Ativo | |||
| Base da Força Aérea Josiah Tungamirai (Thornhill), GweruProvíncia de Midlands, perto de Gweru | FVTL | Ativo | 13/312,672 m |
|
| Base Aérea de Manyame (Novo Sarum), HarareHarare, ao lado do Aeroporto Internacional Robert Gabriel Mugabe | FVRG | Ativo | 05/234.725 masfalto e concreto |
|
Nenhuma base aérea corresponde a essa busca.
Who is stationed where in the Air Force of Zimbabwe
Unidades voadoras por base, unidades atuais primeiro. The Air Force of Zimbabwe kept the Rhodesian squadron numbers: No. 7, the Fireforce helicopter squadron of the Bush War, still flies Alouette IIIs from Manyame, while No. 5, once the Canberra squadron at New Sarum, now flies the F-7 at Gweru. Nos. 1 and 4 Squadrons are listed as inactive, although Wikipedia’s Thornhill article still gives No. 4 aircraft. The Royal Air Force training schools of the Second World War are listed and marked as not Rhodesian.
- Esquadrão nº 2Cobra · Jet training and light attack squadron · active
- Hongdu K-8 Karakorum, BAE Hawk T.60/T.60A, de Havilland Vampire FB.9 and T.55 (Rhodesian era)
- Esquadrão nº 5Arrow · Fighter squadron · active
- Chengdu F-7II/IIN and FT-7BZ
- Esquadrão nº 6Tiger · Basic flying training squadron · active
- SIAI-Marchetti SF.260M, SF.260TP and SF.260W; Percival Provost (Rhodesian era)
- Esquadrão nº 4
- Reims-Cessna FTB337G Lynx, Aermacchi AL-60 Trojan (Rhodesian era)
- Esquadrão nº 1
- Hawker Hunter FGA.9
- Rhodesian Air Training Group flying schools1942–1955
- North American Harvard and other RAF trainers
- Esquadrão nº 3Falcon · Esquadrão de transporte · ativo
- CASA C-212-200 Aviocar, Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander, Douglas C-47 Dakota (era Rodesiana)
- Esquadrão nº 7Aranha · Esquadrão de helicópteros · ativo
- Aérospatiale Alouette III, Mil Mi-35P
- Esquadrão nº 8Escorpião · Esquadrão de helicópteros · ativo
- Agusta-Bell 412SP, Mil Mi-172, Agusta-Bell 205 (era rodesiana)
- Esquadrão nº 5 (era Canberra)
- English Electric Canberra B.2 e T.4
- No. 28 Elementary Flying Training School (Royal Air Force)1941–1945
- de Havilland Tiger Moth, North American Harvard, Fairchild PT-26 Cornell
Nenhuma unidade corresponde a essa pesquisa.
Air Force of Zimbabwe milestones, 1914 to today
An Air Section of the 1st Battalion, Rhodesia Regiment, formed in 1935–36, is the starting point of the lineage.
19 September: the Southern Rhodesia Air Force is formed; its first pilots had won their wings on 13 May 1938.
April: the unit becomes No. 237 (Rhodesia) Squadron RAF and fights in East Africa; the Rhodesian Air Training Group begins work.
March: flying training begins at Thornhill, near Gweru.
The Southern Rhodesian Air Force is re-established, later equipped with 22 Spitfire F.22s.
March: New Sarum, near Salisbury (Harare), opens as Air Headquarters.
The service becomes the Royal Rhodesian Air Force.
It becomes the Rhodesian Air Force.
19–21 October: Operation Gatling, the Rhodesian air and ground raid on ZIPRA camps in Zambia.
18 April: independence; the service is reconstituted as the Air Force of Zimbabwe.
July: eight Hawk T.60s delivered. 25 July: sabotage at Thornhill damages four Hawks, nine Hunters and a Lynx.
12 Chengdu F-7s delivered; Josiah Tungamirai succeeds Azim Daudpota as commander.
August: the AFZ deploys to the Democratic Republic of the Congo; first strike on a rebel column near Kinshasa on 26 August.
January: three of five F-7s sent to Kinshasa for Laurent Kabila’s funeral crash.
EU and US sanctions cut off spares for the Hawk; Zimbabwe completes its withdrawal from the DRC by the end of the year.
12 Hongdu K-8 jet trainers arrive from China.
Thornhill is renamed Josiah Tungamirai Air Force Base; on 18 December Perence Shiri retires and Elson Moyo takes command.
15 March: Air Marshal John Jacob Nzvede takes command.
Every war the Air Force of Zimbabwe has fought
Missões e perdas onde constam nos registros, e um espaço em branco honesto onde não constam.
- Segunda Guerra Mundial 1939–1945 Army cooperation and later wider RAF service; Rhodesians also served in Nos
- Rhodesian Bush War 1964–1979 Close air support, Fireforce helicopter assault, paratroop transport, reconnaissance and cross-border strikes against ZANLA and ZIPRA
- Mozambican Civil War 1982–1992 Support of Zimbabwean ground forces fighting alongside FRELIMO against RENAMO, including operations against RENAMO’s Gorongosa bases
- Second Congo War 1998–2002 Air defence of Kinshasa, strikes on rebel columns and positions, transport and helicopter support for the Zimbabwean contingent
Air Force of Zimbabwe news from Afterburner
Everything MiGFlug’s magazine has published on the Air Force of Zimbabwe and the aircraft it flies. Esta lista é atualizada automaticamente — novas histórias do Afterburner aparecem aqui.
Everything people ask about the Air Force of Zimbabwe
What aircraft does the Air Force of Zimbabwe fly?
Does Zimbabwe have fighter jets?
What is the official name of Zimbabwe’s air force?
Who commands the Air Force of Zimbabwe?
What happened at Thornhill in July 1982?
Did the Air Force of Zimbabwe fight in the Congo?
Why did Zimbabwe buy Chinese K-8 trainers?
Are Zimbabwe’s Hawks still flying?
What was the Rhodesian Air Force?
Read the aircraft the Air Force of Zimbabwe flew
Cada tipo com uma página no Livro das Feras, primeiro em serviço e depois pelo ano em que deixou a frota.
Todos os fatos foram verificados.
- defenceWeb: African Military Profile: Zimbabwe (13 January 2026)ZDF of two services (army and AFZ); about 29,000 active and 21,800 paramilitary; underfunding, sanctions and obsolete hardware.
- defenceWeb: Sanctions hit Zimbabwean air force (20 June 2014)Air Marshal Perence Shiri and President Mugabe on spares shortages since the 2002 sanctions; types affected; 12 K-8s received from China in 2006.
- defenceWeb: Zimbabwe Air Force asks Nigeria for technical assistance (31 March 2023)Air Marshal Elson Moyo asked the Nigerian Air Force for help with F-7 and Mi-35 maintenance and UAVs; Nigeria trained the first Zimbabwean pilots in the 1980s.
- defenceWeb: artigos com a tag Força Aérea do ZimbábueNotícias e datas: Acidente com o voo AB412 deixa quatro mortos (26 de abril de 2021), acidentes com o voo SF-260 relatados em 8 de setembro de 2014 e 10 de dezembro de 2020.
- defenceWeb: Seis forças aéreas da SADC reforçam o Exercício Blue Lugwasho com contribuições de aeronaves (19 de setembro de 2025)A AFZ enviou um C-212 e um Bell 412 para o exercício de ajuda humanitária da SADC no combate à seca na Zâmbia, entre 9 e 26 de setembro de 2025; o chefe da AFZ afirmou que o Zimbábue sediará o próximo exercício aéreo da SADC em 2027.
- NewZimbabwe: New Air Force of Zimbabwe commander officially takes over (16 March 2024)John Jacob Nzvede promoted Air Marshal and invested on 15 March 2024 in Harare by Gen Philip Valerio Sibanda.
- NewZimbabwe: Airforce helicopter crashes on takeoff from Mnangagwa’s birthday event (16 September 2024)AFZ helicopter crashed on take-off at Masvingo; one crew member slightly injured; government statement by Nick Mangwana.
- NewZimbabwe: Pilot dies in Air Force of Zimbabwe jet trainer crash (6 February 2025)K-8 of No. 2 Squadron, Josiah Tungamirai Air Force Base, crashed about 5 km east of Guinea Fowl; trainee pilot killed; board of inquiry.
- NewZimbabwe: Airforce of Zimbabwe pilot killed as fighter jet crashes (31 May 2025)F-7 crashed in the Wazheri area on the Gweru–Mvuma road on a routine sortie; Squadron Leader (retired) Ritswanetsi Vuyo Ncube killed.
- EurAsian Times: Pakistan to deliver 12 Super Mushshak aircraft to Zimbabwe (10 May 2024)12 Super Mushshak trainers, deal traced to IDEAS 2022 in Karachi; AFZ delegation led by AVM Biltim Chingono; no delivery schedule.
- OurAirports: Josiah Tungamirai Air Force Base (FVTL) and its runway pagePublic-domain database, not the AIP: reference point -19.436718, 29.861945; elevation 4,680 ft; runway 13L/31R 8,766 ft (2,672 m) by 100 ft, asphalt, lit; parallel 13R/31L 7,826 ft (2,385 m) listed as closed (https://ourairports.com/airports/FVTL/runways.html).
- Rhodesian Forces (veterans’ history site): History of Thornhill Air BaseRAF training at Thornhill until 1955 and take-over by the Royal Rhodesian Air Force; runway, taxiway, hardstanding, tower and radar built 1956–1957 for jet training; No. 9 and No. 10 Short Service Units; resident squadrons Nos. 1, 2, 4 and 6; station commanders from Sqn Ldr Doug Whyte (November 1955). A Rhodesian veterans’ account.
- Search Zimbabwe: Govt renames all army barracks (18 November 2017)Statutory Instrument 138 of 2017 under section 89 of the Defence Act: Thornhill Air Force Base becomes Josiah Tungamirai Air Force Base and Fylde (spelt "Flyde") Air Force Base becomes Jason Ziyapapa Moyo Air Force Base.
- Military Africa: Zimbabwe loses another SF-260 trainer aircraft, two pilots killed (Patrick Kenyette, 19 September 2025)9 September 2025 crash shortly after take-off from Josiah Tungamirai Air Force Base; Squadron Leader Chidyausiku and a trainee killed; earlier SF.260 losses in 2014, October 2018 (at the base), November 2020 (Somabhula) and February 2023 (near Mlezu College, Gweru).
- ZimLII: Lei de Alteração de Nomes [Capítulo 10:14], Lei 4 de 1983O estatuto citado pela Wikipédia para a mudança do nome de New Sarum para Manyame. Citado conforme apresentado pela Wikipédia; o anexo do ato não foi lido para esta entrada.
- The Herald: Jason Ziyapapa Moyo, da Força Aérea, nomeia primeira comandante feminina para base aérea (4 de fevereiro de 2025)Base a poucos quilômetros ao sul de Chegutu; a Comodoro do Ar Ellen Chiweshe assume o comando, a segunda mulher a comandar uma base aérea da AFZ desde a independência (a primeira comandou Manyame).
- Notícias da ZBC: Força Aérea do Zimbábue promete ampliar projetos humanitários para 2026 (15 de novembro de 2025)Evento do Fundo de Caridade do Comandante da AFZ na Base Aérea de Manyame, organizado pelo Marechal do Ar John Jacob Nzvede.
Dados verificados em 01/10/2026. As páginas da Ordem de Batalha são geradas a partir de um único conjunto de dados; se algum número aqui divergir de uma página do Livro das Feras, esta página será considerada a mais recente.
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