Dear Editor,
I cannot understand the statements that our president makes sometimes… I do commend Captain Gerry Gouveia for his outspoken com-ments/criticism of the recently purchased Bell 206 helicopters. No one likes to “rain on a parade” but in the case of decisions that would ultimately affect the safety and livelihood of an entire nation, objective criticism is welcomed by intelligent minds. I have no authority and cannot comment much on the helicopters, being just an average citizen and not anywhere near an expert in aviation or warfare. However, just having a visual on something, one can have an opinion and my initial reaction upon seeing the picture of the aircraft for the first time was certainly not delight I imagined a more menacing craft that would at least instill some degree of fear into people.
Capt Gouveia’s words as hurtful as they might have been to the government were dead on in my opinion.
If there is one person in Guyana who is qualified to comment on the aircrafts it would be Capt Gouveia and his words should be taken seriously. He made many realistic points regarding the aircraft.
Military machines are usually graded by their speed, ability to manoeuvre, armour, capacity, and one very important point called “fear factor” or the psychological effect on the enemy. Of course our country is poor and we need to buy what we can afford. We cannot expect Apaches or Black Hawk helicopters fully loaded, that would be way over our budget. However, we do need to buy feasible machines that can get the job done… or not buy any at all.
Capt Gouveia made excellent points with regards to the seating capacity of the aircraft and the kind of performance to be expected. It would be totally useless to be able to track the movements of criminal elements in the jungle by floodlights and not being able to intercept them. Just knowing that eight to 12 fully armed solders with at least one .50 caliber machine gun are abroad a fearsome helicopter, thundering overhead in the sky is enough to maybe force surrender without even a shot being fired.
We all would agree that our dear Bell 206 helicopters are excellent for chasing cars on open highways and providing logistics to the police force on the ground. MSNBC news in the USA effectively uses Bell 206 helicopters to relay news by air. The helicopters can be used to carry one or two persons to have a visual on let’s say a wrecked boat some miles offshore, a broken dam or a flooded area. They can be used to chase a getaway car with criminals from Georgetown to Rosignol for example.
The statements made by Dr Luncheon which were meant as a challenge to Capt Gouveia’s were definitely immature. He wanted a comment one year after the helicopters were bought, he will get one. The helicopters will either be rotting away at the Timehri airport or may be sold.
Yours faithfully,
Lewis Hale
