Kenya to buy five choppers from the US

Kenya is planning to buy five helicopters from the United States to boost the war against terrorism.

Reports indicate the US Army will supply Kenya Air Force with Bell UH-1H helicopters which will be "refurbished to Huey II standard".

It is not clear how much the five helicopters will cost. Sources however, indicated yesterday that the US had such helicopters refurbished for $6.4 million (about Sh650 million) each.

The model of the helicopters to be delivered - Bell UH-1H Huey - is a daily workhorse with an expansive cabin, providing multi-mission flexibility with a standard seating of 12 people.

The aircraft combines commercial Bell 212 dynamic components with the reliable Honeywell T53-L-703 engine, leading to an increase in hover performance and efficiency in hot conditions.

US Federal Business Opportunities said on its website on March 17 that the Programme Management Office had embarked on market research to identify parties with the resources to supply and deliver five baseline Bell UH-1H II (Huey II) helicopters to Kenya.

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They aircraft will come with spare parts, special tools, an operator and maintainer training.

"The Programme Management Office, Non-Standard Rotary Wing Aircraft is issuing this sources sought synopsis, as a means of conducting market research, to identify parties having an interest in and the resources to support the procurement and delivery of five (5) baseline Bell UH-1H II (Huey II) Helicopters, aircraft spare parts, special tools, operator and maintainer training to a Foreign Military Sales customer for the Republic of Kenya," said the website.

Kenya Air Force is the largest and most professional air arm in the East African region.

The Bell Helicopter overhauls the Bell UH-1H basic airframe to OEM standards, provides a complete rewire, updates the avionics and offers an all-inclusive selection of mission specific kits and customisation.

 highly efficient

Bell Huey II is highly efficient in missions such as troop transport into high altitudes, for medical evacuation in hot conditions or transport to and from remote areas. The aircraft can also be used in combat missions.

The US, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Japan, Lebanon, Israel and Argentina are some of the countries currently using the helicopters.

The development comes weeks after it emerged that Kenya will receive a Sh1 billion arsenal from the US to boost the war against Al Shabaab.

An Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), popularly known as a drone, will be delivered by September 2016.

Kenya Defence Forces have killed more than 50 Al Shabaab members in the past two weeks, and the acquisition of the ultra-modern weapons is expected to strengthen their operations in Somalia.