Former Defence Minister Peeni Henare Calls Vanuatu Flight Woes ‘Embarrassing’

Article – RNZ

A Hercules plane carrying urban rescue staff to Vanuatu was stranded in New Caledonia after an engine fault.Felix Walton, reporter

The former Minister of Defence says delays to critical humanitarian flights to Vanuatu are embarassing for New Zealand.

A Hercules plane carrying urban rescue staff to Vanuatu was stranded in New Caledonia after an engine fault Wednesday night.

The C-130H plane had been flying since 1969 and is the same model as the Hercules retired by the NZDF last year.

A second, newer C-130J plane landed in Vanuatu at around 11:30 Thursday morning carrying search and rescue equipment and personnel, including medics and consular staff.

Meanwhile, another ageing C-130H was sent to New Caledonia to pick up urban rescue staff and carry out repairs on the stranded plane.

Former Defence Minister Peeni Henare said the entire saga had been disappointing.

“At the beginning of the year Collins and Luxon said they were going to invest in the NZDF and at the moment we’re not seeing that, so this is an example of why they need to,” he said.

“In June we were promised a Defence Capability Plan from this government, didn’t come through. They said it would come in October, well that’s come and passed. Now this is once again proof we need to take matters seriously not just for the equipment we use but for our reputation.”

He questioned why the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had sent an older plane in the first place, when two of the newer C-130J had been purchased earlier in the year.

“It’s a surprise they didn’t use the new planes, that’s why they were purchased. There will be questions asked about that,” he said.

“We already know with what happened to the Manawanui and now this incident… It can’t look good for the NZDF in the first instance and of course for New Zealand.”

Professional Firefighters Union vice president Martin Campbell sympathised with the urban rescue team, which contained many firefighters, who had been delayed by the mishap.

“A broken down fleet is not an unknown issue for firefighters… We’ve got a fleet that breaks down regularly at fire calls and on our way to fire calls, which delays our ability to do our jobs, so I sympathise with the frustrations they must be feeling,” he said.

“The delays will be frustrating for them, they want to be able to hit the road running and do the job they’re there to do and save as many people as they can.”

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