ANALISIS EC725 COUGAR-GERENTI DIBELI MALAYSIA

Imej oleh Juruforo Pertahanan Tempatan

1. Pengumuman pembelian helikopter Eurocopter EC725 telah menjadi isu yang paling hangat diperkatakan dalam dunia politik dan pertahanan mulai akhir tahun lepas iaitu sebaik sahaja kerajaan membuat keputusan untuk membeli helikopter buatan Perancis itu.

2. Saya juga ada menulis mengenai artikel pembelian helikopter itu dan disiarkan dalam Utusan Malaysia pada akhir tahun lepas, akibatnya wakil Eurocopter yang berpengkalan di Subang telah menghubungi saya akibat kesalahan-kesalahan teknikal yang melibatkan sumber saya dalam analisis tersebut.

3. Sempat juga saya mengingatkan kepada beliau bahawa kesilapan saya tidak perlu diperbesarkan dengan mengambil tindakan terhadap saya atau sumber saya, memandangkan, pembelian itu akan menjadi isu besar dalam negara.

4. Saya katakan demikian bukan untuk mengaitkan pembelian itu dengan soal rasuah atau komisyen tetapi lebih kepada harganya yang sangat mahal iaitu lebih kurang US 427.20 juta (RM 1.452 bilion) sebuah.

5. Masalah harga yang mahal bukan menjadi perkara besar tetapi dalam keadaan sekarang, orangramai mudah terpengaruh dengan isu-isu seperti ini dan seperti biasa akan lahirlah penganalisis pertahanan tidak rasmi di kedai-kedai kopi seperti mana juga lahir penasihat undang-undang tidak bertauliah apabila timbul soal pengambilalihan kerajaan PR di Perak.

6. Politik bukan minat saya, bagi saya, politik adalah sesuatu yang kotor dan penuh dengan tipu helah, oleh kerana saya pernah belajar Sains Politik dan teori-teori komunikasi, saya mengikut perkembangan politik dari jauh dan secara berhati-hati agar tidak terperangkap dalam permainan orang-orang politik sama ada mereka dari pihak pembangkang mahupun kerajaan (Saya mampu membuat blok politik tetapi maklumat yang saya ada sangat sensitif, tidak boleh disiarkan kalau nak borak kedai kopi bolehlah).

7. Berbalik dari soal tadi, jangkaan saya tepat, serta merta, lebih kurang seminggu selepas itu, pembelian itu dikaitkan dengan skandal dan hari ini semua orang menyiarkan surat dari Pengerusi Mentari Services Sdn Bhd Kapt (B) Datuk Zahar Hashim.

8. Beliau yang cuba menjual helikopter jenis Kazan MI-182 KF tewas dalam tender itu dan mengambil langkah drastik untuk menyiarkan surat itu kepada media (media internet) termasuk keluar dari parti Umno untuk menyertai PAS.

9. Simpati kepada Zahar dari saya apabila helikopternya tidak terpilih walaupun mempunyai kelebihan yang sangat ketara iaitu harga helikopternya adalah yang paling murah berbanding semua pembida yang memasuki tender itu.

11.Masalahnya, helikopter MI-182 KF yang cuba dijual oleh Zahar datang dari pihak kedua iaitu Kelowna Flighcraft LTD yang berpengkalan di Kanada dan bukan dari pengeluar asal.

12.Jika anda hendak membeli kereta Proton yang baru, sanggupkah saudara membelinya dari Syarikat Ah Seng sedangkan kita boleh dapat dari pengedar Proton yang bertauliah dengan jaminan alat ganti serta servis percuma selama setahun.

13.Lagipun, Eurocopter sudah berada di Malaysia sejak beberapa tahun dahulu melalui pembukaan pejabat dan hangarnya di Subang malahan helikopter keluaran itu digunakan oleh pihak awam, polis dan tentera di negara ini.

14.Mengapa Zahar menjadi wakil kepada Kelowna Flighcraft LTD dan bukan kepada pengeluar asal MI-182 KF adalah persoalan yang tidak mampu dijawab oleh saya.

15.Ini merupakan satu pelaburan yang besar, sudah tentu Malaysia mahu timbal balas yang menguntungkan atau sekurang-kurangnya seimbang dalam soal pembelian helikopter ini.

16.Eurocopter merupakan sebuah helikopter yang terbaik di dunia dan diasaskan dari Super Puma yang sudah terbukti penggunaannya dalam medan perang dan khidmat-khidmat lain.

18.Saya difahamkan pembelian awal helikopter (12 buah dan opsyen untuk 13 buah lagi) ini bukan bertujuan untuk menganti Nuri tetapi lebih untuk dipakai dalam misi Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR), buat masa sekarang, Tentera Udara Di Raja Malaysia (TUDM) tidak mempunyai helikopter CSAR yang dedikasi malah helikopter Nuri yang sedia ada hanya dinaik taraf untuk misi Search and Rescue (SAR) sahaja.

19.Saya tidak rasa kerajaan akan menggantikan keseluruhan armada Nuri dengan EC725 versi mahal ini, mungkin satu tender lain akan dibuka ataupun tetap memilih EC725 tetapi dengan konfigurasi basic yang harganya tentu lebih murah.

20.Sebuah helikopter CSAR haruslah mempunyai perlindungan armor yang baik, kelajuan tinggi, kemampuan untuk terbang malam, mampu untuk membuat apungan otomatik selama beberapa minit pada ketinggian tertentu, terbang dalam semua cuaca dan memiliki beberapa teknologi khusus, kesemua faktor ini ada pada sebuah helikopter yang kita panggil EC725.

21.Saya tidak berminat untuk membicarakan soal teknikal bagi helikopter EC725 ini kerana maklumat demikian boleh diperolehi dari internet dengan mudah malah pernah disiarkan oleh media-media tempatan.

22.Misi CSAR sangat penting dalam menyelamatkan juruterbang yang jatuh di barisan belakang musuh, latihan bernilai jutaan ringgit setahun akan punah apabila juruterbang ditawan dan banyak rahsia boleh diperolehi oleh mereka.

23.Dalam semua pembida itu, hanya EC725 yang mampu terbang untuk sejauh beberapa kilometer jika bahagian gear penerbangan bocor selepas terkena tembakan menyebabkan minyak hidraulik kering.

24.Kemampuan ini sangat penting kerana helikopter yang dikhususkan untuk CSAR akan terpaksa untuk keluar masuk dalam kawasan berisiko tinggi.

25.Jika saudara merujuk kepada artikel saya pada Ogos, 2008 sebuah helikopter jenis Sikorsky H-92 Superhawk telah jatuh terhempas di Sarawak apabila cuba membuat ujian tersebut dengan mengeringkan minyak hidraulik dari bahagian gear enjin.

26.Selepas beberapa minit terbang, helikopter yang tidak berdaftar dengan Jabatan Penerbangan Awam Malaysia telah jatuh terhempas dan ia tidak pernah dilaporkan oleh media.

27.Sumber terapat saya memberitahu, bangkai helikopter terbabit masih berada di tempat jatuhnya dan tidak dapat dibawa keluar akibat masalah birokrasi dan beberapa masalah lain (salah satu sebab kerana ia tidak didaftarkan dengan JPA).

28.Lagi pun, Superhawk merupakan helikopter yang sangat baru dan penggunaannya belum pernah terbukti, Malaysia tidak mahu menanggung risiko itu selepas mendapat pengajaran yang cukup menyukarkan semasa menjadi di antara pengguna pertama di dunia melalui pembelian pesawat Hawk 100 dan 200 ketika ia mula dikeluarkan dahulu.

29.Sedangkan, keperluan untuk mendapat helikopter baru yang boleh dipakai serta merta untuk beberapa tahun tanpa masalah kesukaran alat ganti dan servis sangat-sangat mustahak sehingga ia diberi taraf “Projek Nasional” menyebabkan beberapa projek pembangunan ATM lain ditunda.

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BERIKUT MERUPAKAN PEMBIDA HELIKOTER YANG DIBERIKAN MENGIKUT NOMBOR SIRI PEMBIDA TENDER, CUBA

TEKA YANG MANA SATU EC725 TETAPI YANG PASTI BUKAN YANG PALING MAHAL

T521/07/A/001 yang menawarkan Pound Sterling 341,888,123 atau RM2,085,486,032;
T51/07/A/002 (RM663,189,500);
T521/07/A/003 (Euro 104,632,729/RM494,528,228);
T521/07/A/004 (US$220,496,700/RM777,666,812);
T521/07/A/005 (US$708,305,497/RM2,498,044,671);
T521/07/A/006 (Euro 233,345,390 / RM1,103,206,734)
T521/07/A/007 (US$348,178,365 / RM1,227,852,548).
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30.Trend pembelian sistem pertahanan ATM juga banyak yang tidak berpihak kepada yarikat-syarikat AS kecuali, baru-baru ini berlaku perolehan dari jenis raifal tempur M4, saya sendiri hairan bagaimana perkara ini boleh berlaku tetapi mungkin untuk menjaga hati rakan dagangan terbesar negara iaitu, AS sendiri (bagilah peluang sikit, apa salahnyakan) atau camputangan orang tertentu???? 🙂

31.Jika soal harga menjadi persoalan, mengapa tidak disyorkan sahaja Malaysia membeli helikopter terpakai Black Hawk dari AS? Jika ini berlaku, saya percaya isu yang tertimbul adalah negara ini menyokong dasar-dasar pro Yahudi dan imperialisme negara AS itu.

32.Kita tidak menafikan helikopter dengan teknologi Russia sebenarnya sangat baik dan telah digunakan oleh bomba kita tetapi ini soal CSAR, bukan soal penerbangan utiliti, dalam hal ini, teknologi merupakan faktor utama dan bukan pasal harga murah, jadi dalam kes ini, kelebihan teknologi memang ada pada EC725 kita.

33.Senario pembelian sistem pertahanan di negara ini banyak berpaksi kepada soal politik dan ekonomi di mana, setiap pembelian harus mempunyai timbal balas yang menguntungkan Malaysia.

34.Zahar hanya memainkan isu harga, beliau tidak mendedahkan timbal balas yang mampu diperolehi Malaysia sebagai “marketing strategy”nya.

35.Saya percaya perkara ini tidak ada kerana surat beliau tidak menyebut perkara-perkara itu, apabila beliau mengambil keputusan untuk mendedahkannya di dalam internet, perkara-perkara seperti di atas bukan lagi satu rahsia.

36. Sejak dari Defence Service Asia 2006 (DSA) lagi, saya sudah mula menyaksikan Eurocopter aktif menjalankan kempen untuk menjual produk EC725nya kepada Malaysia dan salah satu bukti yang nyata, syarikat itu telah mempamerkan EC725 pada kawasan pintu masuk di kawasan pameran yang mengambil tempat di Subang pada masa itu.

37.Keputusan pembelian hanya diketahui pada 2008, ini bermakna dari kaca mata saya, Eurocopter telah mula memainkan kempen yang aktif sejak dari dua tahun sebelum itu atau mungkin lama.

38.Saya yakin, jika helikopter itu dibeli dari negara blok Timur seperti Russia atau Kazan, unsur yang meragukan mungkin timbul kerana etika jual beli negara-negara ini agak longgar berbanding dari blok barat.

FAKTOR POLITIK DALAMAN UMNO DALAM EC725

39.Saya berasa sedikit pelik apabila isu helikopter ini diletupkan selepas Abdullah Badawi mengambil alih Kementerian Pertahanan dari Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak (kini Perdana Menteri) dan tidak ada usaha jitu yang datang dari Abdullah untuk mempertahankan isu ini.

40.Pada masa yang sama, Najib tidak dapat menjawab isu pembelian ini walaupun pemilihannya dibuat semasa pentadbiran beliau disebabkan beliau ditukarkan ke Kementerian Kewangan.

41.Adakah ini merupakan usaha terancang untuk memburukkan imej Najib, itu saya tidak tahu tetapi ada pembida lain (AYAT-AYAT INI TERPAKSA DICENSORED)……………………………CENSORED (SIAPA YANG BACA SEBELUM CENSORED TAHULAH AYAT APA)

42.Jadi bukan sahaja Kapten Zahar yang marah kerana helikopternya tidak terpilih tetapi orang lain pun marah juga.

43.Simpati kepada Najib, cabaran yang beliau hadapi sangat hebat, bukan sahaja mengenai EC725 tetapi terpaksa bergelut dengan fitnah kes pembunuhan, satu tuduhan serius yang akan menyaksikan kita ditanya Allah jika terlibat dalam hal fitnah-menfitnah ini.

44.Sebelum terlambat, saya juga ingin mengucapkan menteri kegemaran saya, Datuk Zahid Hamidi yang kini menjadi Menteri Pertahanan baru, saya suka Zahid ini pasal saya ikut dia naik motor besar selama dua minggu di Indonesia (errr tapi saya duduk dalam van lah).

ANALISIS HARGA EC725 BRAZIL DAN PERANCHIS

41.Isu panas yang dicetuskan oleh ahli politik kita ialah perbezaan harga di antara EC725 Malaysia dengan Brazil, inilah senjata pembangkang yang diulang tayang banyak kali.

42.Untuk pengetahuan pembaca, pihak Brazil dilaporkan akan membeli lebih kurang 50 buah EC725 tetapi dalam konfigurasi basic, lagi pun pembeliannya banyak jadi harganya lebih murah.

DIBAWAH SAYA SERTAKAN PETIKAN KOMEN DARI BLOGGER PERTAHANAN, SAUDARA MUMUCHI DI ALAMAT http://securemalaysia.blogspot.com,

ANDA JUGA BOLEH MEMBACA MENGENAI OPERASI FAJAR (OPERASI LAWAN LANUN SOMALIA) DI BLOG TERSEBUT LEBIH TERPERINCI DARI YANG ANDA BOLEH PEROLEHI DARI MANA-MANA MEDIA.

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Looking at the value of this order of Euro271 million for 10 helicopters against Eurocopter’s bid price of Euro233.3 million for 10-12 units shows that we are paying less per unit of CSAR helicopters.

The fact is that in 2002 Euros the value for each CSAR helicopter is Euro27.1 per unit.

So the whole contract value in Ringgit Malaysia(RM) at today’s exhange rate of Euro4.528 per RM is at RM1.227 Billion and when comparing it with Eurocopter disclose price of Euro233.234 million = RM1.056 billion shows that France’s purchase even in 2002 values costs more than our purchase.

And this is for a contract for their home nation with no countertrade. So this piece of comparative purchase news serves to confirm that the Malaysian Government has obtained a good offer for this tender.

In fact you can also compare the difference between a normal military specified EC725 against the CSAR specified version from this article.

So get your monetary facts right. You do not need a bipartisan parliamentary committee to investigate a purchase that has disclosed the correct figures showing it is above board just in order to justify some cooked-up figures as demanded by the opposition while suspending the deal.

We need these helicopters now! The facts has been laid down on your feet. It is now up to your common sense to make a sound judgement.
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43.Akhir sekali, biarlah kemasukkan helikopter-helikopter ini dilangsungkan dengan cepat memandangkan rekod penerbangan helikopter Nuri yang agak mencemaskan.

44.Jika ada lagi kejadian Nuri jatuh, siapa yang harus dipersalahkan??? kerajaan Malaysia yang menangguhkan pembelian itu atau suara-suara pembangkang yang menyebabkan pembelian itu ditangguhkan?

45.Ketika ahli politik kerajaan dan pembangkang mendapat kredit kerana kelantangan suara mereka dan orangramai mendapat seguni beras setiap satu rumah hasil dari duit yang sepatutnya membeli helikopter itu, siapa pula yang akan membela nasib korban helikopter Nuri?

46.Adakah anda tahu….setiap kali seorang juruterbang tidak kira helikopter atau pesawat kepak kaku dalam TUDM menjalankan tugas, isteri mereka akan meminta ampun dan maaf dan tidur malam mereka tidak lena mengenangkan nasib sang suami yang menanggung risiko menjaga negara sedangkan pada masa yang sama kita mempertikaikan apa yang sepatutnya menjadi hak mereka.

47.Saya nak tanya satu soalan, bila kali terakhir anda pergi ke Tugu Negara? atau ke muzium tentera? atau tempat-tempat yang akan membawa fikiran kita melayang mengenangkan tentera kita yang terkorban dan putus kaki tanpa mendapat gelaran datuk atau tan sri?

NOTA PENULIS : ANALISIS INI DIBUAT DARI KACA MATA PENULIS BERDASARKAN SUMBER-SUMBER TERHAD.
PENULIS YAKIN KAPT ZAHAR MEMPUNYAI SEBAB YANG KUKUH UNTUK BERTINDAK DEMIKIAN TETAPI SEBAB ITU TIDAK DINYATAKAN DENGAN JELAS DALAM SURATNYA (BOLEH TEKA TAPI TAK NAK LAH BAGI TAHU KANG BLOG NI JADI BLOG POLITIK PULAK APABILA KITA MENUNDING JARI PADA INDIVIDU TERTENTU TANPA BUKTI).
PEMILIHAN EC725 MEMANG AGAK MENGEJUTKAN KERANA PENULIS MENYANGKA AW101 DARI AGUSTA WESTLAND AKAN MENANG.

CALON KEDUA ADALAH HELIKOPTER DARI ROSOBORONEXPORT IAITU MI-17V-5 MEMANDANGKAN HELIKOPTER SYARIKAT ITU SUDAH MULA BERTAPAK MELALUI JABATAN BOMBA DAN PENYELAMAT
PENULIS JUGA PERCAYA KESEMUA HELIKOPTER SELAIN DARI DUA DALAM SENARAI PENULIS DI ATAS AKAN GAGAL

(NAMPAKNYA TELAHAN PENULIS TELAH SILAP KETIKA ITU).

DIBAWAH INI TURUT DISERTAKAN PETIKAN BERITA YANG BERCAMPUR DENGAN KOMEN BLOGGER MUMUCHI, YANG TULISAN “BOLD”, ADALAH ULASAN BELIAU.

SELEPAS MEMBACA ULASAN BELIAU, SILA LERET KE BAWAH UNTUK MEMBACA ISI HATI SEORANG JURUTERBANG HELIKOPTER NURI (REAL PILOT BEB, BUKAN ARM CHAIR GENERAL MACAM SAYA) MENGENAI ISU YANG DIBINCANGKAN.

I did not want to comment on the Public Accounts Committee’s investigation into the Cougar CSAR Helicopter purchase before this as it would have been sub-judiced but this following report by The Sun that I found to be the most accurate and complete on their findings has actually vindicated the purchase. I have put my personal comments in red at the end of some the statements in the article and I sincerely hope that the Government will act on the PAC’s worries about the continuing delay in the replacement of the Nuri’s due to this foolish storm in the cup unresponsibly created by these political opportunitist and issue the LOA to Eurocopter before the price validity expires in February 2009.

PAC finds no evidence of abuse in Eurocopter tender process

By: Husna Yusop and Giam Say Khoon (Mon, 03 Nov 2008)
KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 3, 2008) :

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) did not find any evidence of abuse of power in the tender process by the Defence Ministry for the RM1.6 billion purchase of 12 Eurocopter EC725 helicopters.

Azmi and his deputy Tan Seng Giew at the PAC meeting yesterday.

However, PAC chairman Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid expressed concern that the deal, now on hold, was struck without any physical inspection. “Although we did not find anything incriminating in the two-day inquiry, PAC members have expressed the need to continue monitoring the progress of the deal because it is a high-profile case. We will not to conduct inquiries and call back witnesses or new witnesses if necessary,” he said today.

Azmi said the committee the tender process conducted according to international standard and transparent. ” We were unable to determine the correct price for the deal because we could only evaluate from the best tender. According to the terms of tender, the tendered price of RM1.604 billion from the Eurocopter will only hold until February. “After that, it will have to depend on whether the manufacturer is still willing to sell at the same price,” he added.

However, Azmi said PAC was not satisfied with the ministry for not having a physical inspection before choosing Eurocopter. He said the test flight pilots of the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) had tried the helicopter and thus opined that physical inspection was not necessary. “So we suggested to the RMAF to make physical inspection compulsory in future and a decision was made that a thorough pre-delivery inspection will be conducted when the deal is done,,” he said.

To those who cleverly claim no flight-test was done in alleging improper tender process, please note that the finding is that such a flight test was done aaa but now the recommendation is that physical inspection is carried out upon receiving the helicopters. For those of you with no brain, this means when the helicopters have finished being manufactured and ready to be received aaa, not before. Anyway this is a no brainer as it is an established industry practise, so does this imply we have not done pre-receiving inspection before. That would be a surprise and is worth further investigation.

Azmi said PAC also proposed that the government set up an independent review panel to monitor any expensive procurement. “It is up to the government to determine whether procurement involving RM100 million and above should be monitored by a panel but that will ensure that a purchase is done in a more transparent manner. Azmi also explained that there was confusion in the price of the helicopters as different figures had been reported. “All figures were incorrect as we had seven tenders and only three of them were suitable. Of the three, the lowest tender was RM1.262 billion, followed by RM1.604 billion and RM2.442 billion, but the government had
chosen the RM1.604 billion tender as it met the requirements set by the Air Force,” he said.

Asked why the government did not choose the lowest tender, Azmi said only Eurocopter has managed to meet the requirements set by the ministry. The requirements, I cannot reveal,” he said.

To all of you so called experts out there, please note that only this helicopter meet all the requirements by the Air Force, so even though the price was not the lowest it was the lowest fully compliant tender so naturally it was selected la. By the way, even the PAC cannot disclose the requirements, so don’t play-play and clever-clever speculate your own specs aa…definitely not like your spectacles one….

“The Nuri helicopters are in the process of being phased out although RMAF has ensured that the helicopters are still airworthy until 2015. A total of 95 persons died in helicopter crashes involved Nuris and it is difficult to determine whether the crashes were due to human error. “

We are also worried about delaying the replacement of the Nuri,” said Azmi.

So please-please my Dear Government, stop politicising this issue with your political fears and issue your LOA to Eurocopter before the price validity ends in February 2009 .

On the allegation by Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timur) that the Nuris can still function for another 20 years, Azmi said the Nuris did not have night flight capability and were unable to perform auto-pilot rescue in the air. These can only be overcome by using new helicopters and it will cost more for the Nuris to be upgraded” he said. — end —

Aiyaa Uncle Lim, now you understand aa…Nuri not suitable for CSAR as cannot hover one and cannot fly night time. And to modify to include all these items as proposed for the cougar “radar warning receiver, laser warning receiver, missile launch warning receiver etc”, it would cost more la, so the only advantage is for you politically but our airmen will still be risking their lifes for your political games only. So if any Nuri drop I put it on your head aaaa !Ptui!

DI BAWAH INI MERUPAKAN BLOG ISI HATI SEORANG JURUTERBANG NURI YANG DIPETIK DARI http://hogwash1964.blogspot.com

On the 15th of December, I was in Keningau clocking my last resupply operation for the border outposts in Sabah for 2008 before my Christmas leave commenced. I was with my veteran crewman Warrant Officer I Ali, awaiting Capt Ian and the gang to fly in from Labuan en route to our technician’s wedding in Ranau, supposedly to change over the copilot I was with as he had to return to complement the crew for Tawau’s standby.

So there we were, all refuelled and ready to close shop for the day as the interior weather was also building up, so one more trip was not feasible. Finally, there she came, out of nowhere, low and loud. True to form, Ian did a few low-level pitches before terminating the landing in a low-level flare over the grass strip. Lt Frezal emerged form the aircraft, looking as tormented as ever and exchanged a few words with Capt Khalid, my copilot. WO Ali and I continued our small talk as the handing over took place. In minutes, Khalid and Frezal were done and Khalid had
strapped in as copilot, ready to fly.

A change in the rotor beat told us that the collective pitch had increased to raise the Nuri to a hover and there she floated while the crew checked that all was well to fly off.

Then Ali and I stopped our conversation, and almost in reverence, we watched for the umpteenth time, the Nuri climb vertically and transit forward with all the grace of a sea mammal in the ocean meadows where it is most at home. Here we were, Ali and I, limping old dogs that we were after more than 20 years each in service, still gaping in awe and affection at the sight of this old bird taking ever so like a ballerina to the sky. Then he uttered a single word which echoed my thoughts: “Beautiful!” I could only nod and sigh, “Yes.”

She, as far as appearances go, is our come-lately, but first love. Even our spouses and offspring take a rear seat when the country calls on us and this Nuri becomes the answer we give.

“Sir, others can say what they want about the Nuri. They can insult us Nuri crew for flying a 40-year old aircraft, the press can make fun of us for our crashes, but when it comes to the years of service, her contributions and deeds and the lives she has saved, they cannot recount her numbers.”

I know people shudder when I say I am a Nuri pilot, especially when their full fathom of aviation experience and knowledge is from Malaysian Airlines and Air Asia. Some respond with, “Oh, the flying coffin?” When someone not from the fraternity Starts a tirade on this lady, I bristle. You cannot, based on what our maligned press feeds you, make an attempt to come across as informed and knowledgeable on an aircraft that has saved lives many times over those whose she has taken through no fault of her very own. Do you actually intend to sermonise the clergy?

Would you who live in danger no greater than the ones of your own making in the foundries of your luxury sports cars, make attempt to preach to us whose lives are on the line in using hardware sinless but for her age in the execution of duty?

During the RMAF Helicopter Reunion 2006, Tan Sri Mohd Ngah bin Said, an ex-Cheif of Air Force remarked in his address, “Had it not been for the Nuri in particular, the war against communist terrorists in Malaysia would not have been won in such timely fashion.”

When Cambodia had finally come out from under Vietnam’s attacks and ran her first ever democratic elections, the RMAF Nuri fleet was assigned under the UN, to aid the ferry of ballot boxes from remote polling centres to be counted, sometimes when the aircrew from other countries would not due to minor snags on their helicopters. We were there in Acheh to repatriate the internally displaced people, to help the volunteers and militaries from around the world set up their field hospitals in areas inaccessible by road, river or sea lane, to treat the wounded and
the traumatised Achenese tsunami survivors.

At home, here in this country we love, warts and all, we can’t begin to list those whose lives have been succoured by the Nuri. 40 years of lifesaving and medical evacuations cannot be shoehorned into these pages. Let’s take recent events. The nasty floods in Pahang, Johore and Kelantan through 2006 and 2007, under the chaotic direction of the National Security Division of the Prime Minister’s Department, saw the Nuri freighting loads of food and potable water to stricken victims. When the Somali pirates abducted our MISC seamen off their coast, the Nuri, although unsophisticatedly armed with mere machineguns, was the first to be assigned to the area on board the KD Mahawangsa, immediately halting further attacks on vessels plying the route, holding quiet till the Nuri was recalled. Now, the Nuri in Somali waters has been replaced by the navy’s missile-armed Super Lynx, sending Somali pirates fleeing from any ship they may have contemplated boarding at their fancy.
Therefore, this old bird may be one less pretty than those you would pay a ticket to fly in, but it has, in her unassuming way, done good aplenty.

I was having lunch in the navy wardroom in KD Sri Semporna last January as guests of the Commanding Officer when an ex-commander turned naval contractor asked me about the airworthiness of the Nuri, almost kindly and concerned was he. He contrasted this against the Nuri mishaps he had heard of over his own 30 years in service. I maintained as I do with all who ask, that it is not airworthiness that comes to question with the Nuri.

A pilot has all the authority to snag an aircraft less than serviceable for a task if he examines it and finds it so. But with an operational and meteorological environment far changed from that which the Nuri found herself first flying in, greater demands are placed upon an airframe that was designed in the infancy of helicopter history, to operate from sea-going decks rather than where altitude performances would infringe when trying to climb above inclement weather, just for instance. These diversifications and others strain the initial design brief of
both the aircraft and the aircrew who must now take on the workload at the point where his aircraft is rendered a mere platform for task execution without integral equipment to absorb the said workload. Eventually breakpoint will be reached and aircrew failure will ensue as human performances and reserves are overwhelmed. An aircraft sporting today’s current hardware is better designed to surmount the limitations encountered by older aircraft, delaying the point of
human failure, making for better mission accomplishment and flight safety.

When the RMAF asked for the EC-725 helicopter to be bought so that the Nuri could be phased out, we asked for the full Combat Search and Rescue variant for this very purpose. So that we could be equipped to do what we do. To save lives in the face of hostility. To save lives, period. We were in fact on the brink of getting the EC-725 when it fell victim to politicking and blogger sabre-rattling, and hence the fleet replacement programme is now shelved due to the “uncertain global economic climate”.

This of course, is absolute hogwash. Wherever the mischief was sniffed, that was not the area where the remedy, no matter its suitability, was applied. Instead, we who work are punished with the indefinite delay of what we need to do our job safely within the demands of today’s “uncertain” climate, be it the economics, environment or security which concerns and affects us.

If we were anything like England where members of the executive and royal families served in the air force helicopter flying squadrons instead of being served by them, I wonder what this stirring of phanthoms would have produced for us by way of the Nuri replacement programme. Thus do we fly the Nuri, without the luxury of choice but with pride of service currently unrivalled in this neighbourhood.

Well, when this buy comes to pass, if ever it does in my lifetime, it will only be a matter of time before the risks we take in the interest of national security once again end in undesired fatality, and the public whom we serve in quiet can once again hail our helicopters “flying coffins”.
Posted by Jeffrey Matisa at 18:55 12 comments Links to this post
Labels: An aircrew’s tale