PHOTOS, PAGE 1

       Editor and prime reporter is Doug Terry, a veteran television and radio reporter in   Washington, DC, (details below)

One of the critical needs in Haiti from the first day after the earthquake has been helicopters. They can, on occasion, by pass the one-runway Port au Prince airport and take aid directly to where it is needed. They can serve as transshipment vehicles for goods and personnel that are unable to pass through the airport or other bottle necks.

We don’t have an up to date count on the number of helicopters currently working or available to relief agencies and NGOs. A major step forward was taken by the World Food Program, which brought in three large, 19 passenger helicopters to operate out of the Domincan Republic from the airport in Barahona. They can carry up to 3.5 tones (British weight system) of cargo.

These helicopters are available to relief agencies registered through the United Nations OCHA. Further coordination can be obtained through the logistics cluster web site, which is generally known to all relief agencies.

The US Military, at last word, was said to have somewhere near 50 helicopters operating in Hait, many from the USNS Vinson and the USNS Comfort. These helicopters are deployed for humanitarian missions when available, as the military commanders on the scene see fit.

1.28.10

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