Presently the Maldives military does not have pilots who are capable of operating three aircraft that were donated by India. Defence Minister Ghassan Maumoon has acknowledged, days after 76 Indian defense personnel left the island nation at the instance of Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu. Recently at a press conference which was held at the President’s Office, Ghassan Maumoon briefed the media about the withdrawal of Indian soldiers which was stationed in the Maldives to operate two helicopters and a Dornier aircraft and their replacement with civilians from India.
Ghassan Maumoon also mentioned that there were no Maldivian soldiers with the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) who could operate the three aircraft that were donated by the Indian military despite some soldiers who began training to fly them under agreements that were formed by previous governments. Since it was a training that required passing many stages, soldiers had not reached completion due to many reasons. Therefore, at the moment there are no people in our force who are licensed or fully operational to fly the two helicopters and Dornier aircraft.
The relationships between the two countries came under severe strain after Muizzu, a pro-China leader, insisted on the withdrawal of all Indian military personnel operating the three aviation platforms in the island nation. India has already withdrawn 76 military personnel. However, according to a Maldivian media report, the Maldives government has no intention of removing the doctors from India at Senahiya military hospital. Contrary to Ghassan Maumoon ‘s remarks, when the present administration’s senior officials were in the opposition during the past five years, they criticized the previous government and claimed that there were capable pilots in the MNDF.
The main reason for the arrival of the Indian soldiers was to train Maldivians with the helicopters that were donated during former presidents Mohamed Nasheed and Abdulla Yameen’s governments and the Dornier aircraft brought during former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s government. Despite the failure to complete the training to date, recently Foreign Minister Zameer said that the contract to replace the Indian soldiers with civilians also included provisions for training local pilots.
