NAIROBI, Kenya—The Ministry of Defence received a shot in the arm after the National Police Service (NPS) donated four aircraft to the department.
Principal Secretary, Department of Defence Patrick Mariru, while receiving the aircraft, said they will be used for training purposes.
“This afternoon, together with the Accounting Officer Ms. Bernice Lemedeket, from the National Police Service, we oversaw the transfer of four training rotary wing aircraft from the National Police Service to the Ministry of Defence,” said Mariru.
What is the purpose of the four helicopters?
Mariru further disclosed that the platforms will be used to train pilots from government agencies.
“This was a show of how government agencies should work together,” added PS Mariru.
The Vice Chief of Defence Forces, Lieutenant General John Omenda, the Managing Director of Defence National Security Industries, Major General Bernard Waliaula, and senior officials from the Ministry of Defence and the NPS were also present.
Y News has established that the helicopters are ex-Italian Armed Forces AB 206.
They were delivered as ‘aid’ to the National Police Air Wing when they purchased the additional AW 139 (NASD 001 & 002). Interestingly, since delivery in 2018, they’ve never flown!
Why NPS gave out one of its helicopters
In 2023, an expensive custom-made operational chopper for the NPS was reconfigured for former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua’s use.
This left police without both surveillance and operational chopper, officials said.
Sources aware of the developments said the military brought in experts from Egypt who dismantled expensive surveillance gadgets installed in a police Agusta AW139 to make it for passenger use, particularly for Gachagua.
The move is said to have angered police commanders who felt it was aimed at grounding them in their internal functions.
Among others, the airwing used the chopper to carry out weekly surveillance patrols in known bandit-prone areas, which helped reduce the number of bandit attacks.
It cost the government Sh2 billion to have the chopper in the country.
