KUALA LUMPUR: The police Air Wing Unit yesterday took delivery of two AW139 twin engined medium-sized helicopters which were procured under the ninth and 10th Malaysia Plan in March this year.
Earlier this year, the government had approved the acquisition of six AW139 helicopters to beef up airborne law enforcement roles of the police.
The procurement contract for the first two helicopters was signed on March 9, 2016, between the government and Galaxy Helicopters (M) Sdn Bhd.
The choppers would be delivered in stages. The two received yesterday were the first batch to be handed over to the force.
A brief ceremony was held following a pre-delivery inspection (PDI) at the Leonardo Helicopters facility in Italy, which was graced by Pahang Tengku Mahkota Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah.
Due to the close proximity between the dates of deliveries for the two helicopters, and in an effort to prudently manage finances, the Malaysian government has approved only one PDI for both the helicopters in Italy.
Also present at the ceremony were the Managing Director of Galaxy Helicopters Datuk Johari Harun; Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar; Home Ministry Deputy Secretary General Datuk Wan Ali Besar, and Bukit Aman Air Wing Unit Commander Datuk S. Sathiya Seelan.
In March, the New Straits Times reported that the helicopter, capable of transporting up to 15 passengers at a time, could be used in disaster relief situations, especially those that involve high altitude rescue.
The versatile aircraft could be deployed to an area of crisis with a larger number of special forces compared to smaller helicopters.
It could also land in almost any area of reasonable size, even areas where fixed wing aircraft could not reach, which means the Air Wing Unit would be better prepared to deal with emergencies.
The procurement of the helicopters would achieve the police's desire to further consolidate vulnerable areas in the east coast as well as deploying troops from Sabah's mainland to the island