ASIM, may 23
“When I was a kid, I loved aircraft and dreamed of being an astronaut or a pilot,” says Captain Balla Moussa Coly, Chief of Training Operational Division of the Senegalese Air Force. Captain Coly is part of the first cohort of pilots from the Senegalese Air Force School, graduating in 2021. He takes great pride in having been entirely trained for his dream job in his own country.
At the Dakar-Ouakam Air Base, where Captain Coly is based, the day starts early with new challenges awaiting each day. To meet these demands, the Senegalese Air Force has been modernizing its fleet in recent years. “We seek to have a high-performance, tactical aircraft with good cargo capacity, and the C295 is very suitable for this due to its multi-role functions,” said General El Hadj Niang, Chief of Staff of the Senegalese Air Force. The C295, known for its versatile and easily reconfigurable cabin, can transport people, cargo, and perform a variety of missions. Since acquiring two C295s in 2022, the Senegal Air Force has enhanced its capacity to carry out a range of missions, including logistical support, paratrooper deployment, medical evacuation, and transportation of personnel and VIPs.
