President Rodrigo Duterte has approved the acquisition of 15 Black Hawk helicopters to boost the air defense capability of the military, Malacanang said Thursday.
Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said the helicopter purchase will replace the fleet of Huey helicopters that will be retired to prevent any tragic deaths from fatal crashes.
He said the latest decision of the President to enhance the country’s military air assets was reached during a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
The Malacanang official said the country actually needs 76 helicopters to boost the military’s defense capability, but the government could only afford to secure 15 choppers as it battles the pandemic.
“We need 55 helicopters to cover over 7,000 islands with a total land area of 300,000 square kilometers,” Nograles said.
“While the President initially agreed to acquiring 55 helicopters, that number has been managed and in fact reduced to 15 owing to the challenges that we currently face.”
The government’s planned helicopter purchase came after the Huey helicopter crash in Bukidnon that claimed seven lives last month.
Nograles said the President wanted to prevent any more tragic death from a helicopter crash.
“This is the fourth such crash since July last year and the President wants to end all these tragic deaths. Our servicemen and their families deserve better,” he said.
Nograles noted the Huey helicopters used by the Philippine Air Force are old and must now retire.
“The first Huey took flight 64 years ago. If it is a person, it is due for retirement,” he said.
