FACT CHECK: Did Buhari Commission Nigeria’s First Locally Made Drone?

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday, February 15, 2018 in Kaduna State unveiled a surveillance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) produced locally by the Nigerian Air Force Institute of Technology.

The UAV codenamed TSAIGUMI is claimed to be the first Unmanned Aerial Vehicle to be produced in the country and will be used to fight terrorism, armed banditry and other sophisticated crimes through enhanced air surveillance.

Speaking at the unveiling, Buhari said, “The world is witnessing an ever increasing surge in the employment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in military operations because, while standard air weapons such as missiles, fighters and bombers work against well-defined targets like conventional enemy forces or installations, they are not as useful in today’s complex wars that are fought against adversaries who are often hidden amongst innocent populations or in locations similarly sensitive or difficult to strike by normal conventional means.”

But is the TSAIGUMI really Nigeria’s first locally made Unmanned Aerial Vehicle?

The WHISTLER’s fact check revealed that on December 17, 2013, former President Goodluck Jonathan unveiled a Surveillance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), produced locally by the Nigerian Air Force.

The vehicle named GULMA, is reputed to be the first Unmanned Aerial Vehicle to be produced in the country according to the authorities, and will be used to fight terrorism and other sophisticated crimes through enhanced air surveillance.

As witnessed in 2018, the commissioning of the GULMA also held at the Nigerian Air Force Base, Kaduna by President Jonathan.

Speaking at the event was the then Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh who said that the main objective of producing the surveillance vehicle was to instil self-sufficiency in the fields of aviation and military technology and also to discourage the military’s over dependence on developed nations for supply of security equipment.

He added that the Nigerian Air Force spent between $2million to $3million to train the eleven pilots that will operate the UAVs, and therefore called for more funding.

The Jonathan’s GULMA weighed 40 kilogramme and designed to pick objects 10,000 feet above sea level.

However, Buhari’s TSAIGUMI has a maximum take-off mass of 95kg, could pick objects at 15,000 feet.

So going by records, the TSAIGUMI is not Nigeria’s first locally manufactured UAV.