Engineers from British consortium FBH (Bristow Helicopters and FR Group) are maintaining two Bell 212s that have been sent from Brunei to Sumatra, to support the disaster relief program following the December earthquake and subsequent tsunamis.

Bristow commercial director Allan Brown told AIN that the Bells will transport freight and relief workers to the hardest-hit areas of Aceh. “We have identified other helicopters in China and the Solomon Islands that, if required, can be drafted [into service]. The military types are taking the lion’s share of the burden at this stage, but commercial types normally take over as the peak of the crisis passes.”