KYIV. Jan 11 (Interfax-AVN) - The withdrawal of personnel and equipment of the 20th separate helicopter task force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces that acted as part of the UN mission in Sierra Leone is complete, an official of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry told Interfax-Military News Agency Tuesday.
"A ferry with materiel, equipment and personnel of the 20th separate helicopter task force arrived in Nikolayev from Sierra Leone where it operated as part of the UN mission," he said.
The ferry brought six servicemen, 117 vehicles and 18 containers with equipment and other materiel of the 20th helicopter task force and the 4th separate repair battalion.
Most of the personnel and equipment were returned to Ukraine earlier with the AN-124 Condor and TU-154 Careless aircraft. The helicopter task force numbering 110 servicemen and 4 MI-8MT helicopters was sent to Sierra Leone in march 2001.
According to the press service, the servicemen and equipment of the 4th repair battalion would be withdrawn from Sierra Leone by mid-February.
The UN mission in Sierra Leone was established in October 1999, and the Ukrainian Armed Forces' 4th repair battalion was deployed there in late December 2000. Ukrainian Defense Ministry handed over 220 armored vehicles and 276 other vehicles to the UN mission, and OVER 500 Ukrainian servicemen were involved in repair and maintenance of these.