According to flight tracking data and US sources quoted by Reuters, the United States has been conducting intelligence-gathering flights over significant portions of Nigeria since late November, indicating increased security collaboration between the two nations.
The goal of the surveillance missions could not be independently verified, according to the exclusive report released on Monday.
According to Reuters, the planes came after Donald Trump threatened to militarily interfere in Nigeria in November due to what he claimed was the government’s inability to stop violence against Christian communities.
Additionally, months have passed since a US pilot employed by a missionary organization was abducted in neighboring Niger.
The contractor-operated aircraft usually took off from Ghana, flew over Nigeria, and returned to Accra, according to flight tracking data for December.
Tenax Aerospace, a Mississippi-based company that supplies special purpose planes and collaborates closely with the US military, was recognized as the operator based on the data. Requests for response from the corporation were not answered.
According to Liam Karr, the Africa team head at the American Enterprise Institute’s Critical Threats Project, who examined the flight data, the operation seemed to be operating out of Accra, which he referred to as “a known hub for the U.S. military’s logistics network in Africa.”
According to Karr, the flights indicated that Washington was reestablishing its intelligence capabilities in the area following Niger’s request last year to withdraw US troops from a significant desert air facility and turn to Russia for security support.
He told Reuters, “We’ve seen a resumption of intelligence and surveillance flights in Nigeria in recent weeks.”
According to a former US official, the Trump administration transferred a number of assets to Ghana in November, including the aircraft.
The official stated that the missions included following the kidnapped US pilot and gathering intelligence on extremist groups operating in Nigeria, such as Boko Haram and its splinter faction, the Islamic State West Africa Province, though it was unclear how many planes remained there.
A contemporary US official acknowledged that the plane had been passing over Nigeria, but he refused to elaborate due to diplomatic concerns.
Washington is still collaborating with Nigeria to “address religious violence, anti-Christian attacks, and the destabilizing spread of terrorism,” according to another administration official.
The Pentagon declined to comment on intelligence operations but stated in a statement that the US government had “productive meetings” with Nigeria after Trump’s remarks about the nation.
Requests for comment were not answered by Ghana’s deputy defense minister or Nigeria’s military spokeswoman.
Nigeria has stated time and time again that armed groups attack both Muslims and Christians, claiming that US allegations of Christian persecution ignore attempts to defend religious freedom and oversimplify a complicated security situation.
During a meeting between US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and National Security Advisor Nuhu Ribadu on November 20, the US agreed to use air assets for intelligence gathering, a Nigerian security source told Reuters.
A request for comment was not answered by a Nigerian military official.
On November 7, flight monitoring data revealed the Tenax Aerospace aircraft at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida. The US Special Operations Command’s headquarters are located in MacDill.
Days after the high-level security meeting, on November 24, the plane took out for Ghana. Since then, it has flown over Nigeria nearly every day.
The information indicates that the aircraft is a Gulfstream V, a long-range business jet frequently outfitted for espionage, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions.
