Crew Members Killed in Another UPDF Helicopter Crash in Ntoroko

Another UPDF helicopter (Mi-28) has crashed in Karugutu, Ntoroko District.

According to multiple UPDF sources, all crew members were killed in the crash.

The number of crew members is yet to be established.

Some other incidents of UPDF aircraft crashes have recently occurred, in some cases prompting reshuffles, with reports indicating issues in management. President Yoweri Museveni in 2022 ordered investigations into these series of crashes.

In December 2023, a UPDF Diamond aircraft, which was reportedly carrying surveillance tools to aid in the military campaign that had been launched against ADF in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, crashed in Kasese district.

In September 2022, combat operations officers were killed in Eastern DRC after the aircraft reportedly ran into a tree, and in July 2022, another helicopter crash landed.

In 2022, there were two crash incidents in Fort Portal and Mityana, and a year before that Capt. Caroline Busingye was killed in a UPDF Jet Ranger at Lido Beach in Entebbe.  

UPDF has been boosting its air operations by acquiring more aircraft and setting up modern maintenance facilities. In 2022, President Yoweri Museveni commissioned a helicopter maintenance, repair, and overhaul plant at the Nakasongola Air Force Base which also is set to house an upgrade chopper ware.

The facility is a joint venture by the UPDF's commercial arm, the National Enterprise Corporation-NEC, and Pro Heli International Services Limited, a Russian company.

In April 2023, President Museveni presided over the commissioning into flight of the first overhauled Russian helicopter (MI-24) at this facility. It was the first of its kind project in Sub-Saharan Africa.