Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has resulted in the Republic of Cyprus having difficulty in contracting for firefighting helicopters.
During the past two years the government’s Forestry Department has leased two Russian-owned Kamov Ka-27 helicopters, but the sanctions against Russia imposed by the European Union mean that source is not available for the coming wildfire season. The only bid submitted did not meet the criteria.
The helicopters had been based at Paphos Airport.
The Forestry Department is working with the Tender Board to possibly negotiate with another vendor that had previously showed interest. In the meantime the agency is working toward the purchase of two helicopters.
In July of 2021 Cyprus suffered their deadliest wildfire in decades. Pushed by strong winds, it swept through the southern foothills of the Troodos mountain range during a severe heat wave. The blaze killed four Egyptian workers, destroyed 50 homes, damaged farms and power lines, and forced the evacuation of 10 villages. Greece and Israel each deployed two aircraft, one helicopter came from a nearby UK base, and Cyprus had 11 of their own aircraft working on the fire.