Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a clinically significant mental health condition disproportionately prevalent in military populations exposed to combat trauma. Air Force personnel in Nigeria operate under conditions of sustained occupational stress, exposure to combat-related trauma, and the unique psychological demands of aerial operations in counter-insurgency environments against Boko Haram. Despite the Nigerian Air Force's frontline role in these operations, no empirical data on PTSD prevalence in this population previously existed. A crosssectional descriptive survey design was adopted. A total of 322 participants were selected through stratified random sampling from an approximate base population of 2,500 Air Force personnel. The sample comprised 83.2% males and 16.8% females; the majority (50.3%)were junior enlisted (airmen/airwo- -men), and 43.8% fell within the 26–35 age bracket. Data were collected using the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5), a validated 20- item self-report instrument (Cronbach's α = 0.94 in this sample), with a cut-off score of ≥33 used to establish probable PTSD. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and binary logistic regression were conducted using SPSS version 25.0. The overall prevalence of PTSD was 34.5% (n = 111 of 322), indicating that approximately one in three personnel met the probable PTSD threshold. The mean PCL-5 total score was 29.7 (SD = 14.2) for the full sample, rising to 48.3 (SD = 9.6) among those meeting PTSD criteria. PTSD was significantly more prevalent among personnel with any combat deployment history (48.9%) versus no deployment (13.4%), and peaked at 57.4% among those with two or more deployments (χ² = 47.32, p < 0.001). Junior enlisted personnel showed the highest PTSD rate at 41.4%, compared to 19.0% among commissioned officers (χ² = 12.87, p = 0.002). Intrusion symptoms were the most prominently endorsed (M = 9.8, SD = 4.6), followed by arousal and reactivity (M = 8.9, SD = 4.1), negative cognition and mood (M = 8.4, SD = 4.8), and avoidance (M = 4.2, SD = 2.9). Logistic regression identified combat deployment history (OR = 5.94, 95% CI: 3.21–11.01, p < 0.001), multiple deployments (OR = 3.47, 95% CI: 1.89–6.38, p < 0.001), junior enlisted rank (OR = 2.83, 95% CI: 1.34–5.97, p = 0.006), and male sex (OR = 2.11, 95% CI: 1.02–4.36, p = 0.044) as significant independent predictors of PTSD. This study provides the first empirical estimate of PTSD prevalence among Nigerian Air Force personnel, revealing a substantial and previously unquantified mental health burden. The findings underscore the urgent need for institutionalised mental health screening, psychoeducation, and evidence-based treatment protocols within the Nigerian Air Force, including Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Prolonged Exposure (PE). Policy frameworks protecting personnel from career penalties associated with mental health disclosures are strongly recommended.