Colombia to Inspect Military Base Over MI-17 Helicopter Crash

Colombia is inspecting the Tolemaida Air Base over the recent MI-17 helicopter crash that led to the tragic death of nine soldiers. The entire MI-17 helicopter fleet which is stationed there is now being reviewed.

The investigation aims to determine if there was negligence and failures in the maintenance of the helicopters, which were purchased from a Russian company and are currently grounded due to a lack of effective maintenance.

Assessing the out-of-service MI-17 helicopters in Colombia

In a statement, the Attorney General’s Office announced that “a disciplinary inspection was carried out at the Tolemaida Air Base to verify the status of eleven MI-17 helicopters of the Military Forces that are out of service due to a lack of maintenance.”

The inquiry focuses on the difficulties arising from the inclusion of the Russian National Aviation Services Company S.A. (NASC S.A.) on the well-known OFAC list following the armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Since dealing with the Russian company is now sanctioned, Colombia has to explore new options to ensure the required maintenance for the fleet.

Meanwhile, the Colombian maintenance brigade announced that it is seeking an alternative to guarantee the proper functioning of the aircraft. In this regard, it explained that it is reviewing seven companies that could potentially take on these maintenance tasks.

For now, military officials continue to showcase the works that they perform with this type of helicopter.

The public ministry warns, however, that if proper maintenance is not carried out, eight of these helicopters could be out of service by 2026, severely affecting the operational capacity of the Colombian Air Force. In this context, the entity conducting the investigation requested reports on the operating life of the vehicles, as well as the maintenance tasks performed in recent months.

Controversy over suspension of contract with Russian company

Last March, the Russian embassy in Colombia stated that the MI-17 helicopters were out of service because of the unilateral suspension by the Colombian Defense Ministry of the maintenance contract with the Russian company that had formerly been performing work on them.

In this regard, the Russian Embassy clarified that the ongoing conflict with Ukraine had nothing to do with the ability to perform maintenance works. It is worth remembering that Colombia initiated the breakup of the contract in February 2023.

“The Russian company never expressed the inability to fulfill its obligations and, on the contrary, insisted on the execution of the contract,” says the statement from the Russian Embassy in Colombia.

Five accidents over the last 14 months

In the last 14 months, five helicopters of the Colombian Air Force have suffered accidents, with a toll of twenty-one soldiers killed. Two of these aircraft were MI-17 helicopters. The first of them crashed in October last year in Anori, Antioquia Department, with a toll of five soldiers dead and two civilians injured.

The second accident involving this aircraft occurred on April 29, with a toll of nine soldiers killed. The other three incidents involved other types of aircraft. However, the existence of an alleged lack of maintenance at the air bases, particularly compromising the Russian helicopters, has continued to raise suspicions in some sectors.

It is worth remembering that the Colombian government received a purchase offer for these Russian vehicles from the United States, valued at 300 million dollars, which Colombia rejected, claiming that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine demanded neutrality.