UK to deploy three RAF Chinooks to quake hit Nepal

UK MOD Photo The UK government has announced decision to deploy three Royal Air Force CH-47 Chinook helicopters to the recent earthquak...

UK MOD Photo

The UK government has announced decision to deploy three Royal Air Force CH-47 Chinook helicopters to the recent earthquake hit Nepal along with funding for additional UN helicopters.

The earthquake has left many of Nepal’s roads blocked and vital infrastructure damaged. These military and UN helicopters will help ferrying people and aid supplies across Nepal’s terrain, and enable humanitarian supplies to reach remote and hard to reach communities where aid is desperately needed.

Sent by the Department for International Development (DFID), the Chinook helicopters will travel to Nepal over the coming days.

UK is providing £2.5 million funding for additional UN helicopters, to the UN’s Humanitarian Air Service. The Chinooks will supplement this activity once they arrive in the country.

UK MOD Photo

The three CH47 Chinook aircraft will be transported from RAF Brize Norton to the region, with one Antonov An-225 aircraft containing a Chinook departing earlier this afternoon.

A RAF C-17 aircraft has arrived in Nepal on Thursday, carrying a team of Gurkha engineers as well as crucial aid supplies including shelter kits and solar lanterns, weighing 18 tonnes.

The UK government has pledged £15 million towards the relief efforts so far.