[Anchor]
As we reported continuously last month, the Korea Forest Service's project to introduce ultra-large helicopters to suppress massive wildfires has been shaky from the start. The delivery of the first helicopter has already been delayed by a year and a half, and it has been confirmed that the delivery of the second helicopter, scheduled to arrive next month, has also been delayed by seven months.
Reporter Jang Min-seong has the story.
[Reporter]
This is the second ultra-large wildfire-fighting helicopter contracted by the Korea Forest Service with an American company.
It is a 1967 military helicopter formerly used by the U.S. military that has been remanufactured for wildfire suppression, with a price tag of 44.7 billion won for a single unit.
It was originally scheduled to be brought in by the 30th of next month, but it was confirmed that the company informed the Korea Forest Service last month that it would not be able to meet the delivery deadline.
The company wants to delay the delivery by seven months to the end of June next year.
It is reported that the reasons are the failure to obtain safety certifications from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and South Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport—which are mandatory conditions—as well as difficulties in meeting the production schedule.
The problem is that this does not end with just the second aircraft.
Right away, the first aircraft is scheduled to arrive by June next year, and the third by December next year, but there is no guarantee that the certification process, which typically takes several years, will be completed by then.
With the delivery of the first helicopter already delayed by a year and a half, and now the second one delayed as well, the timely introduction of the remaining five helicopters has also become uncertain.
Despite this situation, the Korea Forest Service has failed to secure even basic information to verify the company's contract performance capabilities, such as its financial status or actual production progress.
Without even being able to figure out how much the certification will be delayed, it is effectively relying only on the stance communicated by the company.
[Kim Man-ju / Head of the Korea Forest Aviation Headquarters (last August): Under the current circumstances, if you (the U.S. company) fail, what we have notified you of is unconditionally liquidated damages. If the second helicopter cannot be delivered...]
The Korea Forest Service stated that it has sent a letter urging the company to fulfill the contract and that if the contract terms are not met, it will review not only the recovery of the deposit but also the cancellation of the contract.
However, it seems difficult to avoid criticism that lax contract management has invited project failure.
(Photo: Yonhap News) (Video: Seol Min-hwan | Video Editing: Kim Jong-tae | Design: Choi Jae-young, Kim Min-young, Byun Da-young | VJ: Kim Jun-ho | Data provided by the office of Seo Sam-seok, Chairperson of the National Assembly Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs, Oceans and Fisheries Committee | Video provided by Columbia Helicopters YouTube | YouTube and SNS sources: Jarasum Yeonggu, Jirisan Sancheong Salari, Bichawa Naltle, Film Master)
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