Questions over exact time chopper crash that killed Gen Ogolla happened.
According to the Board of Inquiry report, the CDF and his entourage took off for the Defence Recruits Training School in Eldoret at 2:22 pm, and the crash happened at 2:20 pm
Gaps in the report by the Board of Inquiry (BOI) that investigated the helicopter crash that led to the death of the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) General Francis Ogolla in April last year raise more questions than answers.
This is especially with regard to the exact time the Huey KAF 1501 helicopter crashed after General Ogolla and his team left Cheptulel Boys High School in West Pokot County.
According to the report, the CDF and his entourage took off for the Defence Recruits Training School in Eldoret at 2:22 pm, and the crash happened at 2:20 pm. So, did the helicopter crash before taking off? What time did the crash happen?
“The Helicopter landed at Cheptulel Boys High School at 1336 hrs. After inspecting construction works at the school, the then CDF and his entourage took off for the Defence Forces Recruits Training School, Eldoret at 1422 hrs. At around 14:20 hours, the Huey KAF 1501, shortly after departure from Cheptulel Boys High School, crashed on a community farm, ‘Shamba la Amani’, and caught fire on impact,” the BOI report reads in part.
President William Ruto, while announcing that Gen Ogolla’s death on April 18 last year, had also indicated that the crash happened at 2.20 pm.
So, was the different type recorded in the BOI report a typographical error?
The report also indicates that the helicopter crashed due to an engine malfunction after it overheated.
Even though the report indicates that the last inspection of the Huey KAF 1501 was 25 hours before the crash, technicians at Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) should have known that the engine had an issue with it if the tests in the summary report are anything to go by.
According to experts, the issue should have been identified during the 2nd to 5th April inspection and the aircraft should have been grounded and the manufacturer informed that the engines were overheating.
The BOI report states that several tests had been done, and before crashing, there were still 19 hours to the next scheduled test.
It further indicates that the chopper’s engine had been changed in December 2023 as the previous one had issues.
Were the tests truly done as indicated? What caused the engine malfunction that led to the December overhaul? Did the ‘old’ engine with issues get changed?
“On maintenance, Huey KAF 1501 underwent a Calendar-based 24-month and 300-hour inspection between June 2021 and October 2023. During the two (2) major inspections, no major defects were diagnosed. The helicopter underwent other scheduled servicing, such as a twenty-five (25) hour inspection on 14 December 2023. An overhauled engine was installed on 12 December 2023,” the report says.
“Additionally, the Helicopter underwent a fifty (50) hours inspection on 9 January 2024, a seventy-five (75) hours inspection on 29 January 2024, and a hundred (100) hour inspection on 11 February 2024. A twenty-five (25) hour inspection on 22 February 2024 one hundred and fifty (150) hour inspection on 17 March 2024, respectively. The last Scheduled Servicing was twenty-five (25) hours, which was conducted from 2 to 5 April 2024, and the Helicopter was left with 19 flight hours to the next one hundred (100) hours scheduled servicing,” the report states.
The crash was the fifth military aircraft accident in just one year.
According to Andrew Franklin, a former US marine and security expert based in Kenya, maintenance has always been a problem for the KDF because of the multiple aircraft purchased from different foreign sources.
Each aircraft model needs different spare parts, which can be expensive and have tedious inventory processes, he says.
As Kenya’s military expenditure is strictly confidential, it is difficult to have oversight on how the money is spent, Franklin adds.
The Defence ministry is not obliged by law to submit annual reports to the president or parliament for scrutiny.
The aircraft transporting Ogolla was one of six Bell UH-1H Huey II helicopters acquired by the army from the US in 2016, according to the Star newspaper.
It was brought in to strengthen the military’s capabilities in counter-terrorism operations.
On the fateful day, CDF Ogolla was with Brigadier Swale Saidi (Commander Engineer Brigade), Colonel Duncan Keittany (Colonel Operations, Defence headquarters), and Lieutenant Colonel David Sawe (Staff Officer Infrastructure Defence headquarters)
Others were Captain Hillary Litali (Aide-de-Camp to CDF), Senior Sergeant John Kinyua (Flight Technician), Sergeant Cliphonce Omondi (CDF Security), and Sergeant Rose Nyawira (CDF Media).
Four people had survived the crash, but two died in hospital, leaving Corporal Frankford Karanja (CDF media) and Colonel Kasaine Ole Kuruta (Defence Headquarters staffer) as the only survivors.
Governance expert Javas Bigambo previously said the incident raised concerns over the safety and protection of senior military personnel.
Bigambo agrees that there is a need for more accountability when it comes to military spending.
The report on the ill-fated helicopter came a year after the crash happened, with Kenyans already having started to ask questions why it took many months for inquiry into an incident that killed someone of the highest military took long to provide its outcome
Even after the report was released, some Kenyans on social media criticised the ministry of Defence, saying it seemed like a cover-up of something bigger than what meets the eye.
The speculation by Kenyans, the media and the Opposition led to President Ruto to warn them this week to keep off the military in random talk.
“National prosperity is built on good governance and inclusive development. KDF is key to upholding these values. Their presence attracts stability and investment as they inspire global confidence. I urge all Kenyans, leaders, politicians, and journalists that our military is the anchor of stability and, therefore, we must be sensitive and keep off matters military in random talk. I will defend the military as it guarantees our stability and development,” the president stated.
