One thing I will say is that a lot of operators are skeptical about sending helos to this part of the world, and I am talking India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka etc.
Tim Wahlberg and the guys from Evergreen took a plane load of supplies to Sri Lanka when the Tsunami hit and had a horrible time with the B/S there. They flew more things in in their Gulfstream, GIV and at about 1am in the morning they got a call from some Govt official telling them that if they didnt get their aircraft out of the country within a couple of hours they were going to seize it. Talk about an ungrateful attitude.
If the military want to play these sorts of games then they should scream and bitch when no one wants to come and help them.
The comments that its a civil war area cant be founded as Aceh provence where we were in Indonesia has been in a state of armed conflict for decades.
Anyway, on a seperate note I am starting to put together a site where companies, pilots and engineers etc can post their details and we will try and help co-ordinate some sort of response when the next disaster hits. Its not if, but when. We have lined up support etc from people and the support from Tim etc at Evergreen to ship helos around the world has been tremendous. I will keep you all posted once the site becomes active.
Cheers
Ned