KUALA LUMPUR: Its confirmed that all six RMAF personnel perished in the Nuri crash. The wreckage was finally found about 1.24pm on Jan 17, five days after it went missing.
Malaysian Defence offers condolences to their families and love ones
The remains have yet to be recovered as the wreckage is located in a ravine near Genting Sempah. Other helicopters cannot get close and the terrain is too rough for the soldiers to stretcher out the remains.
One thing about the whole affair is how an ‘an expert” got involved in the search and rescue effort.
The story from Bernama came online about one hour before the wreckage was found near Genting Sempah. The headline alone shows that the good prof got it wrong.
He claimed that it was probably near Bukit Tinggi, some 15km away (by road). What a misleading story, as bad as the earlier Bernama story about the Personal Location Beacon that cannot be traced.
Most Personal Location Beacon needed to be turn on manually by the person equipped with it. If the person was killed upon impact, the beacon will not work.
Bernama.com
Malaysian National News Agency
Data Shows Missing Chopper May Be In Bukit Tinggi
General
July 17, 2007 12:08 PM
GENTING HIGHLANDS, July 17 (Bernama) — Data from the airborne hyperspectral imaging sensor used to locate the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) Nuri helicopter that went missing with six people on board on Friday shows that the aircraft may be in the vicinity of Bukit Tinggi, according to an expert.
Prof Kamaruzaman Jusoff, an expert in forest engineering survey from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) told Bernama that the data gathered by aircraft used in the search and rescue mission indicated that the helicopter was in Bukit Tinggi.
However, he declined to comment further on the exact location because he will be giving a briefing at the Bukit Tinggi police station this morning.
He said an aerial survey would be conducted again to verify the location so that the search and rescue operation could focus on the area.
The sensor technology developed by UPM had been used to locate the RMAF’s Hawk fighter jet which crashed into the sea two nautical miles off Kuala Rompin beach, Pahang, last year.
A spokesman of the search and rescue (SAR) centre said the operation, which entered its fifth day Tuesday, would also focus on Batang Kali following information from two orang asli who saw a helicopter flying low over the area on Friday.
Several rescue teams were dispatched to the location last night but the search had to be called off due to foul weather and hilly terrain.
“The weather is improving despite the clouds and the search will be intensified,” the spokesman said.
The operation to locate the helicopter and its missing six crew members is the biggest in several years, involving various units and the use of 15 helicopters and airplanes.
The Sultan of Pahang, Sultan Ahmad Shah, who is also the Colonel-in-Chief of the RMAF, had also offered the use of his private helicopter while the United States Navy has sent its Sea Hawk helicopter equipped with sophisticated technology and infrared cameras to help in the operation.
The aircraft carrying pilot Kapt Nor Azlan Termuzi, co-pilot Kapt Nor Intan Asykeen Mohd Arof, Sjn Khusnizam Ariffin, Sjn Mohd Azmie Md Yassin, Laskar Udara Kanan Saifulizam Alias and Laskar Muhammad Ridzuan Ahmad was on it way from the RMAF station in Sungai Besi to Kuantan when it lost communication with the control tower at 9.35am, 10 minutes after take-off.
–BERNAMA
-Malaysian Defence
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