1976 Gubir shootdown | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of Operation Gubir 11 of the Communist insurgency in Malaysia (1968–1989) | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Malaysia | Communist Party of Malaya | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
No centralised leadership | |||||||
Units involved | |||||||
RMAF | MNLA | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
| Unknown | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
11 killed | None |
On 26 April 1976, during a counterinsurgency operation conducted by the Malaysian government against guerilla fighters from the Malayan Communist Party, a Sikorsky S-61A-4 Nuri helicopter operated by the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) was shot down by insurgents in forest reserves near the village of Gubir in Sik, Kedah. The incident killed all 11 people on board, including seven officers of the RMAF. It was the first time guerillas had shot down an aircraft throughout the course of the Malayan Emergency and subsequent communist insurgency in Malaysia.[1]
History
Background
In 1968, the Sikorsky S-61A-4 Nuri helicopter, a variant of the Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King, was in service by the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).[2] On 26 October 1970, the RMAF purchased 40 Nuri helicopters for troop transport, cargo carrying and rescue mission purposes.[3]
Between 1968 to 1989, Malaysia was involved in a low-intensity armed insurgency from the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA), the military wing of the banned Communist Party of Malaya (CPM), as a continuation of the Malayan Emergency from 1948 to 1960. Helicopters, notably the Nuri, were deployed in action soon after their introduction, serving casevacs against the insurgency as early as 18 June 1968.[4]
Unlike the Emergency, where helicopters were not made a target, the MNLA now trained some of its insurgents to shoot down helicopters, which posed a threat to the Nuri aircrew. The first insurgent attack against a Nuri occurred on 6 August 1969, when a Nuri was shot during final approach near Sadao, Thailand. A second attack happened on 22 December 1974, when a Nuri conducting a casevac near Weng, Baling was shot, forcing the helicopter to take off while its casualty was still hanging outside the aircraft.[5]
Operation Gubir 11
The village of Gubir in Sik, Kedah, became a defensive stronghold of the MNLA during the insurgency, and was even reported to have housed Chin Peng, the secretary general of the CPM.[6] To neutralise the insurgency near Gubir, a special operation, Operation Gubir 11, was launched near the village on 15 April 1976. Its main mission was to capture an MNLA training camp codenamed Target Bravo, which contained an underground tunnel network near the Malaysian–Thailand border. The operation came in the form of an airborne assault as preventive measures against booby traps set around the site. Three Nuri helicopters were deployed for the insertion of commandos and its planned extraction.[7]
On 17 April, as preparations for the assault, the site was gradually bombarded and strafed by a combination of artillery fire and aerial support. The assault began after the bombardment ended, but during the helicopter fleet's approach towards Target Bravo, the fleet was attacked by MNLA insurgents and was forced to abort the mission.[7] The commandos' assault returned on 21 April 1976 and was successful in capturing the camp, at the cost of three casualties.[8][9][10]
Course of attack
Aftermath
References
- ^ "11 killed as 'copter shot down". The Victoria Advocate. Associated Press. 27 April 1976. pp. 8A.
- ^ "73 lives lost due to Nuri accidents". New Straits Times. 20 March 1997. p. 4.
- ^ "Families of crash victims recount happier times". New Straits Times. 20 March 1997. p. 4.
- ^ Nor Sulaiman & Rohani, p. 4.
- ^ Nor Sulaiman & Rohani, p. 4–5.
- ^ Mohd Said, Sakini (28 August 2015). "Veteran proud to sacrifice a limb for country". MalaysiaKini. Bernama.
- ^ a b Nor Sulaiman & Rohani, p. 5.
- ^ Abu Bakar, Nazri (11 August 2018). "Be grateful for peace and harmony, commando left disabled by communist booby trap tells younger generation". New Straits Times.
- ^ Nor Sulaiman & Rohani, p. 5–6.
- ^ Nor Ibrahim, Sulaiman; Rohani, Abdul Ghani (1989). "Employment of Sikorsky S61A-4 Nuri helicopters in counter insurgency warfare in Peninsular Malaysia 1968–1989" (PDF). Malaysian Journal of History, Politics and Strategic Studies. 43 (2): 1–22.