SAAF chopper shot at in the DRC
The South African National Defence Force on Tuesday confirmed that a South African Air Force helicopter came under fire in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday. According to Captain Jaco Theunissen of the Joint Operations Division: “The incident took place during a routine visit by the MONUSCO (United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the DRC) Force Commander‚ Lieutenant-General Santos Cruz‚ in the far north east of the DRC.”Theunissen said that “several shots‚ from a small-calibre weapon‚ were fired in the direction of a Oryx helicopter whilst in flight between the towns of Beni and Bunia”.One bullet hit the fuel tank of the chopper‚ he said‚ causing a minor fuel leak‚ and “the pilot managed to safely fly out of the danger zone and landed at the Mavivi Airport near Beni”.Nobody was injured in the incident‚ and the origin of the gunfire is still under investigation by MONUSCO...
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