On April 18, 2024, the Chief of the Defence Forces, the late General Francis Ogolla, visited troops under Operation Maliza Uhalifu (OMU) in the North Rift. Unfortunately, this mission would turn into a national tragedy.

At around 2.20 pm, a Kenya Air Force (KAF) helicopter carrying General Ogolla crashed shortly after departure from Cheptulel Boys High School. The Bell UH-1H-II (Huey) helicopter KAF 1501 crashed onto a community farm, Shamba la Amani, and caught fire on impact, cutting short the life of the country’s top military chief.

After almost a year of speculation, last week, the Ministry of Defence confirmed the cause of the fatal crash.

Operation Maliza Uhalifu (OMU) was a security mission to restore order in the bandit-prone North Rift counties of Baringo, Elgeyo Marakwet, and West Pokot.

The findings now end speculations about the cause of the accident.  

The report states that the helicopter suffered an engine surge, an issue aligned with multiple witness reports describing a loud bang from the engine compartment.

“The helicopter suffered an engine compressor stall (surge). This is consistent with the witness report of a loud bang at the engine compartment and the Measured Gas Temperature (MGT) gauge, which, when powered, displayed an over-exceedance of 914°C,” the report indicates.

The report also revealed that the helicopter experienced a complete power loss. This was followed by a left yaw, drop in engine Revolutions Per Minute (RPM), low RPM audio alarm and change in engine noise, as narrated by witnesses on the ground and accident scene reconstruction.

The Ministry of Defence stated that thorough investigations traced the journey from Wilson Airport to Kainuk, then Chesogon, before heading to the Defence Forces Recruits Training School in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu county.

The investigations confirmed that the crew performed all required safety and operational checks before take-off.

This was the first time a Kenyan military chief died in office. According to media reports, the accident raised safety concerns, as it was the fifth military aircraft accident in just 12 months.

The recently released report stated that the KAF acquired eight Bell UH-1H-II (Huey) helicopters from the United States in 2016. Since then, the helicopters have been extensively used for operational missions and peacetime roles. They have also been tasked with ferrying personnel, logistical supplies, and fire extinguishing, among other assignments, in the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF). 

The Huey KAF 1501 underwent a calendar-based 24-month, 300-hour inspection between June 2021 and October 2023. During the two major inspections, no major defects were diagnosed.

“The helicopter underwent other scheduled servicing, such as a 25-hour inspection on December 14, 2023. An overhauled engine was installed on December 12, 2023. It also underwent a 50-hour inspection on January 9, 2024, a 75-hour inspection on January 29, 2024, and a 100-hour inspection on February 11, 2024,” the report indicates. This was in addition to a 25-hour check on February 22, 2024, and a 150-hour inspection on March 17, 2024.

The last scheduled service was 25 hours, from April 2 to 5, 2024. The helicopter had 19 flight hours before the next 100-hour scheduled service.

The 2022 presidential election controversy

Former IEBC chairman, the late Wafula Chebukati, claimed that on August 15, 2022, General Ogolla, then serving as Vice Chief of Defence Forces, tried to force him to declare Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition candidate Raila Odinga the winner or force a re-run.

In May 2023, President William Ruto said he appointed General Ogolla as the Army Chief “against the advice of many people”.

In April last year, President Ruto and Raila Odinga differed on whether General Ogolla was part of a team that went to Bomas of Kenya, the national tallying centre of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), to try and overturn the 2022 general election results.  

Odinga said, “General Ogolla never contemplated going to the Bomas of Kenya to tell Wafula Chebukati to overturn the outcomes of the 2022 election. I know him. We want that put to rest so he can rest in eternal peace.”

However, President Ruto said General Ogolla admitted to going to Bomas at a private meeting after being sworn in.

“There was one problem with what happened on August 15, 2022, at the Bomas of Kenya. I called General Ogolla, and he told me. ‘I am not going to try to defend myself, and you have…choices: either have me resign or forgive me. ’ I went home and reflected on what General Ogolla had told me,” President Ruto said.

Cause of the accident

The Ministry of Defence’s report concluded that the Huey helicopter had a relatively high level of reliability. It had conducted several operational and training missions, including VIP flights. It had also been operated by a qualified, competent crew. “Based on facts and evidence gathered, the Board of Inquiry is of the opinion that the Bell UH-1H-II (Huey) helicopter KAF 1501 crashed due to engine malfunction,” the report concluded.

In the aftermath of the tragedy, the Kenya Air Force reviewed and updated its Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to prevent similar incidents in the future.