KUALA LUMPUR: All four leased helicopters from Weststar Aviation Services for the air force, are expected to be fully deployed by April.
Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) chief Gen Tan Sri Ackbal Abdul Samad said that two of the Leonardo AW139 utility helicopters had already been delivered on Dec 4 last year.
The remaining two, he said, were expected to be handed over on Feb 1 and April 21, respectively.
"All four helicopters will operate from the RMAF's No 3 Squadron based at Butterworth, Penang.
"Thus far, we have trained and initial batch of eight pilots and four air-quartermasters at the PWN Excellence Sdn Bhd's full-flight simulator (at the Malaysia International Aerospace Centre) located at RMAF Subang.
"Another crew of six engineers and 27 technicians underwent training at the Leonardo's facility (at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport) in Subang.
"They will form the nucleus team to train other cockpit, cabin and maintenance crew," he said after a visit to the RMAF Butterworth base, recently.
Present was Weststar Aviation Services chief executive officer Gen (Rtd) Tan Sri Muhammad Ismail Jamaluddin.
Ackbal added that the RMAF was utilising the AW139 as an interim measure to meet its operational requirements, under the 'Government-Operates-Company-Owns and Maintains' (Gocom) concept, after securing the deal with Weststar via an open tender.
"The RMAF decided to incorporate the 'Gocom' concept to keep operating costs down, in its bid to achieve its mission objectives," said Ackbal.
Under the Gocom concept, Weststar Aviation Services despatched a full complement of spares and maintenance services, including technical and engineering crew, to RMAF Butterworth under the lease deal.
This came about after the grounding and eventual phasing out of the Sikorsky S-61A-4 Nuri fleet in January 2020, which had been a mainstay and workhorse for the RMAF for over 50 years.
Ackbal said the leasing was a short-term, stop-gap solution in its long-term plan to eventually acquire a fleet of 24 new helicopters with combat-search and rescue capabilities.
More helicopters would be leased, if required, for the next five years, he revealed.
"We, therefore, are looking at leasing the helicopters while awaiting selection of the new helicopters which can take up years to be procured gradually
"We have to consider that our air mobility is not affected with the absence of the Nuris.
"At the same time, we have to seek alternatives according to the cost involved and the availability of finance," he said.
The RMAF, he said, already had a fleet of 12 Eurocopter EC-725 Caracals (now referred to as Airbus Helicopters H225M) that were procured in 2012.
"As you are aware, our plan is to have a total of 36 such new helicopters to form three squadrons.
"The procurement for 24 new helicopters is planned to be made during the 13th Malaysia Plan (2026-2030) and 14th Malaysia Plan (2031-2035).
"We plan to acquire a fleet of 12 new helicopters under the 13th Malaysia Plan, and the remaining 12 in the following 14th Malaysia Plan," he said.
The NST is made to believe that there is a great possibility of the RMAF acquiring more new EC 725 as eventual Nuri replacements.
This could be in line with the government's attempt to purchase and operate a similar aircraft fleet to optimise resources and logistics.
He revealed that the RMAF immediately needed up to eight medium-lift, utility helicopters to oversee the operational security needs in the South China Sea and East Malaysia.
Ackbal said the RMAF had sought a budget of RM70 million, which was meant as upkeep for the aged Nuris, from the ministry to acquire leased helicopters.
The decision to phase out the Nuris came following after-thoughts and deliberations the past two decades, in relation to the huge wear and tear, and exorbitant maintenance costs, with spares difficult to source.
The medium-lift AW139 is also being operated by several enforcement agencies in the country, like the police, Fire and Rescue Department, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency and the Royal Malaysian Navy.
It was reported that the RMN had taken delivery of one of three maritime versions of the AW139 from Italy, with the rest scheduled to be delivered by 2024.
The RMN plans to operate the three helicopters from the RMN's submarine base in Teluk Sepanggar, Kota Kinabalu in Sabah.
The twin-engine AW139, powered by Pratt and Whitney PT6C-67C turboshafts, can seat 15, with a crew of two, fly 300km per hour, has a range of 1,061km and endurance of five hours.