United Nations (U.N) Aviation

[jetflite]

I've always wondered how the U.N make up there Aviation units ? How does it work ?
Eg: Where are the Pilots from ?
Are they all pre trained etc ?
Where are they all based ?
Just something that has stumped me for awhile...yet prob very obvious!!
Any info would be great....cheers.

[komac2]

various military i.e 3 sqn rnzaf/australian army aviation + various others in east timor etc, US Army + various others in the sinai etc.

contract civilian company's in some cases

generally the u.n will ask countrys/governments if they are able or willing to comment aviation assets to any particular u.n mission

NO specific UN Aviation corps as such.

[Fareastdriver]

Paint a blue band over the national markings with white UN on it, give the crews a blue beret and that's about it. Civilian aircraft get a white paint job.
If you are lucky you might get UN allowances but if English is your mother tongue you wont.

[jetflite]

Fair enough.... starting to make sense now... Thanks.

[SmilingKnifed]

In Congo we worked (as civvy contractors) for UNWFP (who handle most aviation taskings) and MONUC, the UN mission out there.

Our ops guys were a mixture of civvy contractors and military (mostly Russian). Some top blokes, but generally the most gash organisation I've ever worked for!

[cachirulo]

I think there is one company in spain that flies for U.N. it´s called swiftair i´d say they are in congo with md´s or atr, not sure

[wokkameister]

Remember flying back from Banja Luka in the late nineties in the mighty Wokka, about to turn some 7.62 into fun at the range, when the AWACS came up and said they had an 'airborne intercept' for us.

Lots of blank looks. HP tentatively keys the mike' You are aware of our type?'

Sent after the intercept, which turned out to be a white Huey with the UN markings and Reg painted out.

AWACS told us to standby to engage, and we pulled alongside two blokes in baseball caps chatting away in the cockpit.

I gave them the six barrelled pull over gesture and they just about cacked themselves. Hands flashed around the cockpit and must have found the radio 'on/off' switch, as we were soon stood down, but I believe the outfit they worked for are now hunting OBL.

Happy Days!

WM

[talk_shy_tall_knight]

Once found myself temporarily blue hatted and whitewashed in the mid 90's

http://www.army-technology.com/proje.../chinook3.html

[Roadster280]

Points to note -

Whatever you do, get away from the det when the UN op ends. Going back to black'n'green from white is not fun..... especially in the field. We must have taken a month's production of matt green IRR paint to return the UN assets in Bosnia to NATO.

[TEEEJ]

You can get all sorts of airframes in U.N. markings! These operated over Iraq.

[Wensleydale]

I remember the aircraft above taking up valuable pan space at PSAB in early 2003. Rumour has it that some groundcrew were caught with white paint by security as they were about to add the letters "C" and "TS" to the tail fin markings.

Happy days...(?).