The Guyana Defence Force had no definitive proof of the MV Barima's exact location when the distress call was received, and its only deployable helicopter could not enter the offshore search area.

Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Captain Simon Gordon told the Commission of Inquiry into the MV Barima tragedy on Friday that the ferry's precise position was never confirmed to him.

"We had no definitive proof of where exactly it was," Gordon said, explaining that Somerset was used as a reference point while the team prepared to conduct reconnaissance and narrow the search area. He said the initial information identified only the general area as somewhere along the Essequibo Coast.

Gordon said the GDF's response to a distress call involves verifying the information, determining the likely location and identifying an available aircraft and crew. He estimated that this could take one hour to an hour and a half. He also said he was not in communication with Coast Guard personnel during the operation.

He could not explain why the force's other helicopters were unavailable when the ferry capsized in July.

"Maintenance and flight operations have to say why it's not deployable," Gordon said.

The Bell 407 was the only GDF helicopter available for deployment. Lieutenant Colonel Anson Weekes and Captain Andio Crawford told the Commission on Thursday that its single-engine configuration kept them out of the designated search area.

Weekes testified that he received a call shortly after midnight on July 19, 2026 about a possible vessel in distress. He went to Eugene F. Correia International Airport at Ogle to prepare the helicopter for night flying.

He departed with Crawford and a drone team at about 1:45am and arrived at Hampton Court, Essequibo Coast, at about 2:15am. After the drone team was dropped off, the crew was told to conduct aerial reconnaissance along the coastline in search of survivors.

The helicopter did not go directly to the vessel's coordinates, which were about 8.5 to nine miles offshore near Somerset Village.

"The Bell 407 is essentially a single engine helicopter, and civil aviation regulations would have prohibited me from flying first at night," Weekes said.
Crawford said: "Based on the limitations of the aircraft, we were unable to enter into the search area."

He said it was pitch black and the crew could not see anything, even with the helicopter's searchlight.

Demerara Waves reported on July 19 that two of the three GDF helicopters could not take part in the search-and-rescue operation. Prime Minister Mark Phillips said at the time that one helicopter had been deployed and that he would have to establish why the other two were not working. The report also said a ground power supply unit had damaged critical components and that repairs were being pursued.

Weekes said that after the initial reconnaissance, he coordinated further efforts involving OMNI Helicopters and a Regional Security System aircraft based in Barbados. The GDF crew's initial flight produced no confirmed sightings of survivors, but later surveillance flights along the coastline spotted life jackets and an empty life raft.

The Commission is examining the ferry's seaworthiness and maintenance, passenger boarding, crew competence and the adequacy of the search, rescue and recovery operations. It is also considering whether negligence, misconduct or dereliction of duty contributed to the disaster.

On Friday, the Commission requested a copy of the GDF's search-and-rescue procedures.