Recce now in full command of two choppers as bid made for five more

Four days after the terrorist attacks on Garissa University College, two police pilots were ordered to fly two helicopters to Ruiru, the headquarters of the Recce Company of the General Service Unit. They have remained there ever since.

The crew from the Kenya Police Air Wing based at Wilson Airport, Nairobi, have been operating in shifts to ensure the two choppers are on 24-hour standby, ready for use by the elite Recce commandos.

Inspector-General of Police Joseph Boinnet gave the order based on events surrounding the Garissa in which 142 students, a soldier, two police officers and three watchmen were killed at the university college on April 2.

The four attackers who carried out the slaughter were killed when two squadrons of 14 Recce officers stormed a hostel on the university campus. Special units of the Kenya Defence Forces had been exchanging fire with the attackers most of the day.

The transfer of the helicopters to Riuru followed an expose by the Sunday Nation in the aftermath of the attack that the specialist Recce team left Nairobi for Garissa approximately seven hours after the terrorists struck. The delay gave the terrorists time to taunt and kill more students.

It turned out that the commandos were ready for the rescue mission 30 minutes after the terror raid began but waited for hours because there was no helicopter available to transport them.

The situation was not helped by a decision to move them by road through heavy traffic to Wilson Airport from where they boarded fixed-wing planes and flew to Garissa.

The squadrons arrived in Garissa after a flight of one-and-a-half hours.

Less than 45 minutes after storming the hostel, they gunned down all the terrorists.

Air Wing Commandant Colonel (rtd) Rogers Mbithi confirmed that his team is on a round-the-clock standby at Ruiru. The Sunday Nation learnt that a future plan is to have a detachment of the air wing at the company’s headquarters since the Recce Company’s unmatched capabilities and need for super rapid deployment has become clear.

“The air wing follows orders. Once the task has come from the headquarters we undertake it without question, as long as it is authorised. For now, we are on standby in Ruiru,” said Col Mbithi. The aircraft are two Bell helicopters, one belonging to the police and the other to the Kenya Forest Service.

Last year, President Uhuru Kenyatta gave the Inspector-General power over personnel and equipment of the Kenya Wildlife Service, Kenya Forest Service, Kenya Prisons Service and National Youth Service when it comes to tackling crime.

The Sunday Nation can also reveal that the Executive has moved to ease bureaucracy in the police service so commanding officers in sensitive missions have direct connection to the President.

If all goes according to plan, the Recce Company Commander and the GSU Commandant will enjoy unrestricted access to the Head of State, notwithstanding their bosses — Inspector-General and his deputies.

A senior officer with long experience in security operations said that was the flexible structure in place during former President Moi’s era that became entangled in red tape after Mwai Kibaki took over the presidency.

To increase deployment efficiency, the Interior ministry asked Deputy Inspector-General Grace Kaindi for specifications to acquire additional airplanes.

Last week, bidders were invited to compete for tenders to deliver to the air wing four utility helicopters and a troop carrier. The government wants to have the fleet within four months.

TROOP CARRIER

The police want a troop carrier than can carry at least 18 passengers.

At present, aircraft at the Police Air Wing are in bad shape and cannot be relied on.

Six of the aircraft are “beyond economical repair.” They include three Cessna 310, each with a capacity of six passengers, a Cessna 402 which carries 11 people, a Bell 47 helicopter with a capacity for three and a BO-105 air ambulance.

There are also two Cesna 208 planes and a Bell helicopter that are out for routine maintenance. The air wing also has four high-capacity MI-17 Russian-made helicopters that carry between 24 and 28 people. One is out for routine maintenance while the others need overhaul — after which they can remain in service for another five years.

A survey conducted more than 10 years ago recommended that the aircraft that were beyond economical repair be sold. The recommendation has never been implemented.

The government plans to spend Sh2.7 billion in acquiring the new aircraft. But even then, a security expert lamented the old practice of largely dedicating them to carrying VIPs, at the expense of troops.

Another security officer said the Garissa case showed that survival of people under siege relies heavily on the time taken for an effective response team to arrive. He said until other security units are trained on how to operate within “enemy territories where they do not enjoy the element of surprise, then it is clear the Recce Company is our main hope.”

State House spokesman Manoah Esipisu admitted there had been lapses in the response. He said the GSU’s Recce Company could not fly to the scene immediately because the helicopter that took Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery and Mr Boinnet carries only three passengers.

While the two top officials landed in Garissa just minutes after 10 a.m. the Recce teams arrived at 1.56 pm, almost nine hours after the killings started. Unlike other elite units, the Recce are specialised in close quarter battle (CQB) for fighting in urban areas and inside buildings.