Elson Moyo

Air Marshal Elson Moyo is a retired Zimbabwean air officer who served as Commander of the Air Force of Zimbabwe from December 2017 to March 2024 and was one of the main figures in the 2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état attempt. In 2003 he was promoted from air commodore to air vice-marshal by former president Robert Mugabe.

Early life and education

Moyo was born in Mberengwa. In 1977, when he was a student at Manama Secondary School, Moyo together with his cousin SB Moyo left school and joined the liberation struggle via Botswana.

Career

Moyo was one of the first blacks to receive full training as a pilot together with retired Air Marshal Shebba Shumbayaonda. However, the two had to be trained outside the country because the Rhodesian government worked to block black Africans from becoming pilots.

After Zimbabwe gained independence, Moyo was a flying instructor at Thornhill Airbase in Gweru. During this time he trained many pilots who went on to become senior officers in the AFZ. Moyo was promoted from air commodore to air vice-marshal in November 2003. In early 2007, he held the post of Chief of Staff - Operations. Unlike former Air Force Commander, Perrance Shiri and the other high-ranking AFZ officers, Moyo is able to fly an aircraft and as such he commanded a degree of personal loyalty from those senior officers whom he instructed during their flying training. in March 2007 Moyo had become critically ill as a result of suspected poisoning. He later recovered. In 2015, Moyo was still in military service and reported to be the Chief of Staff for Joint Operation and Plans.

Elson Moyo achieved some notoriety after he was sued for allegedly committing adultery with the wife of a policeman.