7 News Belize

Helicopter’s Mission Was Fraught With Danger
posted (March 2, 2020)

We also asked about the very alarming issue of night vision capability. As we told you on Friday, the helicopter didn't have it. But, the experienced pilots pressed on anyway, in the total darkness of pre-dawn, and into a cold front. We asked today if all those elements were a recipe for disaster:

Jules Vasquez
"Is that an area of urgent interest that in fact these gentlemen were put in a mission to fly into the night without specific night time capabilities?"

Admiral John Borland - Chief of Defense Staff
"That is indeed is one of the burning issues. It is no secret to us that indeed, that is the case. Those reports have been made, not recently but in other times that there is a shortage of equipment that would allow the air wing to operate at night. We do know that the air wing has restrictions on night flying and it is very unusual that those guys would do any night flying because of the restrictions they face, they limitation of not having adequate night flying equipment to equip the aircraft or for the pilots in the form of night vision devices or in the form of night vision equipment for the aircraft itself. That would be the forward looking infrared or the radar sets and so on."

Jules Vasquez
"Wednesday night at around 10:30, a strong cold front came in, there were very strong gusts coming in off the sea. We know that the cruise ship called for Thursday had to be cancelled and they were cancelled because the massive cruise ships did not think it's safe to enter Belize's waters with and told as many as 50 knots heading their way. How much of a factor was weather? Or Might it have been in affecting the ability to stay airborne for a helicopter?"

Admiral John Borland
"These helicopters we know are very robust and can certainly operate to a certain extent of winds and rain and visibility etc. I cannot give you the exact specifications as to what limitations these aircrafts can operate in as it applies to weather. Yes we knew we had foul weather, poor would I say - little to no visibility but for an aircraft to fly, the decision ultimately lies with the pilot. He's the one that makes that call whether or not he can fly. If the weather was such that deemed it unsafe for the helicopter and for that crew to be out there operating, it was the responsibility of the pilots to make that judgement call. No one in command or no one in management can force you to fly in conditions that are not safe to operate in."

Jules Vasquez
"We know that if you are a soldier or a pilot working for the military, it's not like on a commercial basis, you have mission. You have been given a mission to act in support. I am saying, were they, whoever gave the directive and that perhaps will also need to be clarified, whoever gave the directive, did they send them on a suicide mission? No to low visibility going into a strong front that's coming in the pre-dawn."

Admiral John Borland
"You know our pilots are trained to pushed the envelope, to fly to the limit of their resources being their physical capabilities, their equipment capabilities but no mission supersedes the value of the lives of the pilot and the crew."

Jules Vasquez
"Who gave the order?"

Admiral John Borland
"That is yet to be asserted, that is one of the questions that are in the forefront of the interviews to be conducted. By the time we give that preliminary report in 3 days' time, we should have that information available and ready to present."

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