The Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet) is questioning how a Volta River Aviation helicopter has been making flight decisions after a spate of emergency landings, despite not being registered with the agency.
The aircraft, identified as 9G-AFW, made yet another forced landing on Monday in the Adansi Afuokrom District – the same area where a military helicopter crash killed eight people just six days ago.
This latest incident follows two others within the past week, one in Ajumako in the Central Region on August 6 and another in Nkawkaw in the Eastern Region on Sunday.
All three landings have been linked to poor weather.
According to GMet Chief Forecaster Felicity Ahafianyo, GMet is the only institution authorised to provide civil aviation stakeholders with official weather updates for safe operations.
Since the aircraft is not registered with the agency, she said it raises concerns about where it has been sourcing its weather data and whether that information is reliable enough to ensure flight safety.
“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 quizzed.
The development comes at a time of heightened scrutiny over aviation safety standards, following last week’s fatal military helicopter crash, which killed 8, including the Defence and Environment Ministers.
Source: Kenneth Awotwe Darko
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