Maldives: Pilots 'not capable of operating Dornier aircraft given by India', says defence minister

India has withdrawn 76 military personnel from Maldives, confirmed by Defence Minister Ghassan Maumoon. The minister admitted that the Maldives military currently lacks pilots capable of operating three aircraft gifted by India.

The press conference held at the President's Office revealed that despite ongoing training, no Maldivian soldiers in the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) are certified to operate these aircraft, local media reported.

"As it was a training that required passing various stages, our soldiers had not reached completion due to various reasons. Therefore, there aren't any people in our force at the moment who are licensed or fully operational to fly the AHL platforms and Dornier," Ghassan said at the press conference held at the President's Office. 

The lack of training among the MNDF soldiers was the main reason why Indian soldiers arrived with the Indian helicopters donated during former the governments of Maldivian Presidents Mohamed Nasheed and Abdulla Yameen. Indian soldiers also arrived with the Dornier aircraft brought during former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's government. 

The move comes after Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu, a pro-China leader, insisted on the withdrawal of Indian military personnel by May 10. However, the Maldivian government has expressed no intention of removing Indian doctors from the Senahiya military hospital.

Interestingly, the same officials who now claim a lack of trained pilots had previously criticised the former government, stating that there were capable pilots in the MNDF. The Indian military personnel were primarily in Maldives to train locals in operating the donated aircraft, a task yet to be completed.

The Maldivian government said there were 89 soldiers in the island nation to operate a military helicopter and a Dornier aircraft donated by India, which were used mainly for medical evacuations. Despite this, Foreign Minister Zameer stated that the agreement to replace Indian soldiers with civilians also includes provisions for training local pilots.