‘They’re Not Registered With Us’ – GMet Questions VRA Helicopter After Series of Forced Landings
The Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet) has raised concerns over the operations of a Volta River Aviation helicopter that has made three forced landings within a week, despite not being registered with the agency.
The aircraft, identified as 9G-AFW, made its latest emergency landing on Monday in the Adansi Afuokrom District — the same area where a Ghana Air Force helicopter crash claimed eight lives just six days earlier.
This incident follows two others in quick succession: one in Ajumako in the Central Region on August 6, and another in Nkawkaw in the Eastern Region on Sunday. All three have been linked to adverse weather conditions.
GMet’s Chief Forecaster, Felicity Ahafianyo, stressed that her agency is the sole authority mandated to provide official weather updates to civil aviation stakeholders to ensure safe operations.
“I understand the VRA Aviation… we don’t have any details on them. They don’t take the weather forecast from us. So where are they getting their information from?” she questioned.
According to GMet, the lack of registration raises critical concerns about the source and reliability of the weather data the aircraft relies on for flight decisions.
The development comes amid heightened public scrutiny of aviation safety standards following last week’s fatal military helicopter crash, which claimed the lives of eight people, including the Minister for Defence, Dr. Edward Omane Boamah, and the Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed.
Source – My News Ghana
