By Joseph Allen
Seven members of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), including two of the force’s most senior pilots, and several other senior officers are missing after an army helicopter went down in the Arau area in Region Seven, some 30 miles from the Venezuelan border.
According to the GDF, a search and rescue operation has been launched to locate the missing Bell 412 helicopter (8R-AYA), a relatively new aircraft, which was on a mission to visit troops on the western border.
The helicopter departed Base Camp Ayanganna for Arau at 09:23 hours yesterday, with three crew members and four passengers.
Those on board were Lieutenant Colonel Michael Charles, the Force’s most senior Pilot, with decades of experience flying aircraft in all types of conditions. His co-pilot was Lieutenant Andio Michael Crawford.
The passengers comprised, team leader, Commander 1st Infantry Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Michael Shahoud, who was accompanied by Brigadier (Rtd) Gary Beaton, Lieutenant Colonel Sean Welcome, Staff Sergeant Jason Khan, and Corporal Dwayne Jackson.
Army Chief of Staff, Brigadier Omar Khan, during a press conference last evening said that there is currently an ongoing effort to find the missing GDF aircraft and personnel with the assistance of the Force’s partners.
Khan said that the team’s mission at the time was to check on the troops close to the borders, when they stopped at Olive Creek to refuel.
Shortly after takeoff, Khan said that they lost all signals from the chopper which later emitted an Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) signal at 11.20 hours, from coordinates approximately 30 miles east of Arau on the western border.
“Whenever an ELT Signal is emitted in aircraft; it signals an issue. An ELT signal is based on a crash landing or hard impact or it can be triggered manually,” he explained.
Upon receipt of this signal, the Chief of Staff said that the GDF tried to contact the aircraft, but no communication was obtained with no one seeing the aircraft going down.
As such, the Force immediately activated their search and rescue party comprising GDF ranks, flown in by its Skyvan aircraft and assisted by a private company.
The day of searching bore no fruit, due to the weather and other conditions.
“I can tell you that the weather conditions in the general area have not been the best; heavy overcast, and rainy. The terrain is mountainous and heavily forested”, Khan said.
Due to the prevailing conditions, the search was suspended and will continue today. However, the Chief of Staff noted that with the data gained on the first search, the force and its partners will be more equipped.
Meanwhile, the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority has been notified of the incident and a report compiled, detailing among other things, that the craft did not have any issues.
The Brigadier also said that he was aware that this incident has turned up the level of anxiety, especially at a time when Venezuela has ramped up its aggression against Guyana due to the border controversy.
He acknowledged that all possibilities are being examined, but for now, the focus is on the missing personnel and their wellbeing.
“We are considering every possibility and right now our priority is to find and save the lives of our officers and ranks.”
When asked if any Venezuelan aircraft were spotted in the area, the Brigadier responded that none was seen.
“We do not have any information suggesting that there was any, that there were any Venezuelan aircraft in that area. The location I mentioned is approximately 30 miles east of the border.”
He added that the decision to fly in the area at that time was planned by senior members of the force.
“There is always a looking back to see all of the decisions we have made, but I tell you as a Force, every time we deployed there is an assessment done. There is a map analysis of our flight route, which was done. The decision to go into that area was a decision made by the persons who would have assessed the safety of the flight. I’m trusting that the judgement was good.”
Khan also mentioned that the GDF’s partners are aware of the incident and will be collaborating with them.
