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Roundel of Ghana air force
Air Forceยท ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ญ Ghana

Ghanaian Air Force

The Ghanaian Air Force operates 19 military aircraft in 2026 โ€” 4 combat aircraft (fighter and attack jets), 10 helicopters, 2 transport aircraft, 3 trainers. It ranks #122 of 160 air forces worldwide, with 3 more aircraft on order.

Active aircraft
192026
On order
+3
Combat
4
Helicopters
10
AIRS Index (Air Inventory Rating of Strength)
1.9/ 100
Global rank: #122 / 160
The score reflects a fleet of 4 combat aircraft, 10 helicopters and 2 transports out of 19 active airframes, weighted by combat effectiveness.
Combat quality 0.05 ยท enablers ร—1.00 ยท armament ร—1.00 ยท availability ร—0.99
How this score is calculated
Fleet Composition โ€” 2026
  • Helicopter 10 +3
  • Combat 4
  • Training 3
  • Transport 2
ActiveOn order
Fleet Evolution
2020 โ€” 18 18 2020 2021 โ€” 23 23 2021 2022 โ€” 10 10 2022 2023 โ€” 20 20 2023 2024 โ€” 20 20 2024 2025 โ€” 19 19 2025 2026 โ€” 19 19 2026
Origin of Aircraft
Most Used Aircraft
Mi-17 Hip-H profile drawing Mi-17 Hip-H Helicopter ยท 5 active JL-8 profile drawing JL-8 Combat ยท 4 active Z-9 Haitun profile drawing Z-9 Haitun Helicopter ยท 3 active DA42 Twin Star profile drawing DA42 Twin Star Training ยท 3 active C-295 Persuader profile drawing C-295 Persuader Transport ยท 2 active H175 profile drawing H175 Helicopter ยท 1 active
Recent air force events Updated daily
  1. MAR 52026 H175 Delivered First Airbus H175 helicopter delivered from France, received at Air Force Base in Accra with water cannon salute.
View all 2 events โ†’

Full inventory in 2026

7 aircraft types

Ghana Air Force

Aircraft Origin Model year Active ฮ” YoY Ordered
Combat
JL-8 ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China
๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ฐ Pakistan 		1994 4 โ€” โ€”
Helicopter
Mi-17 Hip-H ๐Ÿ‡ท๐Ÿ‡บ Ex-USSR 1977 5 โ€” โ€”
Z-9 Haitun ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China 1994 3 -1 โ€”
H175 ๐Ÿ‡ซ๐Ÿ‡ท France 2014 1 +1 +2
Bell 412 ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ฆ Canada
๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ United States 		1981 1 โ€” โ€”
Mi-24 Hind ๐Ÿ‡ท๐Ÿ‡บ Ex-USSR 1972 โ€” โ€” +1
Transport
C-295 Persuader ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ธ Spain 2001 2 โ€” โ€”
Training
DA42 Twin Star ๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡น Austria 2004 3 โ€” โ€”
ActiveOn order

Overview

The Ghana Air Force is the aerial warfare branch of the Ghanaian Armed Forces. Established on July 24, 1959, it has emerged as one of the West African country's key defense units. As of 2021, the Air Force operates under the command of the Chief of the Air Staff. The primary mission of the Ghana Air Force is to defend Ghana's airspace and provide aerial support to the ground forces. The Air Force operates a modest fleet of aircraft, consisting mainly of transport, utility, and training aircraft. These include aircraft models such as the Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano, Casa C-295, and Diamond DA40 trainer aircraft. The Ghana Air Force also has a small number of helicopters, including the Kamov Ka-32 and the Mil Mi-17. In addition to its defense responsibilities, the Ghana Air Force occasionally participates in peacekeeping missions under the United Nations and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), supporting regional security efforts.

Compiled from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), official air force and government publications and dated press reports; the update journal below lists the sources of each pass. Last updated on 6 October 2026. Suggest a change

Frequently Asked Questions

How many aircraft does Ghana have?
Ghana Air Force operates 19 active military aircraft as of the current year. Additionally, 3 aircraft are currently on order.
How does Ghana's air force rank globally?
Ghana Air Force ranks #122 out of 160 air forces worldwide based on the AIRS Index (Air Inventory Rating of Strength), which measures overall air power capability considering fleet size and combat effectiveness.
How many combat aircraft does Ghana operate?
Ghana operates 4 combat aircraft, including fighters, multirole jets, and attack aircraft. These form the core of its offensive and defensive air capabilities.
How many military helicopters does Ghana have?
Ghana Air Force operates 10 military helicopters, including attack, transport, and utility rotorcraft used for various combat and support missions.
What is the AIRS Index score of Ghana?
Ghana has an AIRS Index (Air Inventory Rating of Strength) score of 1.9 out of 100. This composite score weights every active airframe by category and by generation tier (strategic bombers highest, then combat aircraft, helicopters and transports), scales the combat fleet by its enablers โ€” tankers and airborne early warning โ€” and its stand-off armament, and applies a budget-based availability proxy to the whole force.
Where does Ghana get its military aircraft from?
Ghana sources its military aircraft primarily from China, Ex-USSR, and Pakistan. The fleet composition reflects both domestic production capabilities and international defense partnerships.
Compare this Air Force
๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ญ Ghana vs
๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ซ Burkina Faso ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ฎ Ivory Coast ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฌ Nigeria ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ณ Senegal ๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡ฌ Togo
Related Pages
Chinese Aircraft Designations Mi-8 and Mi-17 Variants: Hip, Mi-171, Mi-17V-5 and Mi-8AMTSh Chinese Fighter Aircraft Soviet and Russian Aircraft Designations
Latest Data Updates
  1. OCT 62026 Updated Unconfirmed entries removed (EMB-314 Super Tucano)
  2. OCT 62026 Updated Fleet counts revised (EMB-314 Super Tucano, Mi-24 Hind)
  3. SEP 232026 Updated Super Tucano order revised to five aircraft, matching the government-confirmed purchase.
  4. SEP 232026 Updated Z-9 helicopter fleet reduced after a 2025 crash.
  5. SEP 32026 Updated Bell 412 fleet now linked to its own type page instead of the UH-1 Iroquois
  6. JUL 272026 Updated 8 aircraft types added; inventory date updated
  7. JUL 242026 Updated EMB-314 fleet entry linked to its aircraft page