Adebayo Hamed Lawal was born on 14 September 1941, in Offa, now in Kwara State. He attended Government College, Ibadan (1955–1962). He enlisted in the Nigerian Airforce in 1963 and was trained as a Military Pilot in West Germany, graduating in 1964.
Postings included Commander, Port Harcourt Base (1969–1970), Commander Kano Base (1972–1973) and (1975–1977) and Commander,
Makurdi Base (1977–1978).[2][3]