George Tamunoiyowuna Kurubo (27 July 1934 – 2000) was

Nigerian Air Force The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) is the air branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is the youngest branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is one of the largest in Africa, consisting of about 15,000 personnel and aircraft including eight Chinese Che ...

's Chief of the Air Staff from 1966 to 1967. Brigadier George T Kurubo was the third Commander of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), the first indigenous to hold the post. He was married, had four children, visited the Government School in Bonny.

Education

From 1948 to 1953, Kurubo attended Government College in

Umuahia Umuahia () is the capital city of Abia State in southeastern Nigeria. Umuahia is located along the rail road that lies between Port Harcourt to its south,and Enugu city to its north. Umuahia has a population of 359,230 according to the 2006 Nig ...

, then Regular Officers' Training School in

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

in 1953, then Officer Cadets Training School,

Eaton Hall, Cheshire Eaton Hall is the country house of the Duke of Westminster. It is south of the village of Eccleston, in Cheshire, England. The house is surrounded by its own formal gardens, parkland, farmland and woodland. The estate covers about . The fi ...

in 1954. From 1954 to 1955, he attended

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town of ...

, then the Young Air Infantry Officers' School in 1956, then Senior Air Infantry Officers' School in 1961, and finally Command and Staff College,

Quetta Quetta (; ur, ; ; ps, کوټه‎) is the tenth List of cities in Pakistan by population, most populous city in Pakistan with a population of over 1.1 million. It is situated in Geography of Pakistan, south-west of the country close to the ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

in 1964.

Career

Kurubo was promoted

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

and then

platoon commander {{unreferenced, date=February 2013 A platoon leader (NATO) or platoon commander (more common in Commonwealth militaries and the US Marine Corps) is the officer in charge of a platoon. This person is usually a junior officer – a second or firs ...

in 1956. Between 1957 and 1965, her served in various command positions. In 1964, he moved from Lt-Col in the Army to the newly formed

in 1964. In January 1966, he became the first indigenous Air Force Chief. An Easterner, he did not go with the Igbo-led secession because he was from

Rivers State Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa Ib ...

which was carved out of the Eastern Region at the outbreak of the

Nigerian Civil War The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence f ...

. Serving as the Eastern commander of logistics, Kurubo defected from

Biafra Biafra, officially the Republic of Biafra, was a partially recognised secessionist state in West Africa that declared independence from Nigeria and existed from 1967 until 1970. Its territory consisted of the predominantly Igbo-populated form ...

to the Federal Government. From January–July 1966, Kurubo served as a member of the Supreme Military Council, and as a member of the Federal Executive Council. On 12 August 1967, he was appointed Nigeria's Ambassador to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

, where he stayed until 1973. In 1970, he was promoted to

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

. From until 1975, Kurubo served as Nigeria's ambassador to

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

, also accredited to

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

. On , Kurubo retired from the military

Political career

In 1977, he served as chairman of the Bonny Local Government Area's Management Committee. Then, from 1977 to 1978, he was a member of the Constituent Assembly of the

Second Nigerian Republic The Second Nigerian Republic was a brief formation of the Nigerian state which succeeded the military governments formed after the overthrow of the first republic. Background Contested elections and political turbulence in the Western region en ...

.Raph Uwechue, Africa Who's who, Africa Journal Limited, 1991
p. 965
/ref> Kurubo died in 2000.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurubo, George T 1934 births 2000 deaths Nigerian Air Force officers Ambassadors of Nigeria to the Soviet Union Ambassadors of Nigeria to Turkey People from Bonny 20th-century Nigerian politicians Ambassadors of Nigeria to Iran Graduates of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Rivers State military personnel Chiefs of the Air Staff (Nigeria) Government College Umuahia alumni