RP prepares for bonanza of helicopters from US

WASHINGTON — The Philippines is seeking to buy at least two helicopter simulators from the United States to train up to 100 new pilots for a bonanza of 40 Hueys in the pipeline from the United States and Singapore, the defense attaché at the Philippine embassy said.

Gen. Delfin Lorenzana said he had been talking to Dynatlantic, a small New York-based firm that specializes in building military training gear, about the possibility of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) buying two training simulators at a cost of $5 million.

"We were not training new chopper pilots before because we didn’t have too many helicopters. But with the arrival of the additional Hueys we need more pilots, at least 100 of them," he said.

Lorenzana did not say how advanced the negotiations for the helicopter simulators were.

Thirty of the Huey or UH-1H helicopters were pledged as military assistance to President Arroyo during her state visit to Washington in May 2003.

Ten of the helicopters are non-serviceable and intended to provide spare parts for the functioning ones.

Lorenzana said seven of the 20 serviceable Hueys are being refurbished and should be ready for delivery in the first quarter of 2005, possibly by February. The remainder will be delivered on a staggered basis.

In addition to the 30 helicopters from the US, the Philippines has ordered 10 refurbished Hueys from a Singapore-based company, Lorenzana said. The deal, which is on a purely commercial basis, is expected to cost the AFP $6 million.

The Huey was a symbol of US combat operations in Vietnam. Over the years, updated and modified variants have been introduced – most of them equipped with machine guns, rockets and grenade launchers, others fitted with night fighting gear and anti-tank missiles.