How old AgustaWestland choppers have left Rajasthan govt grounded
The Rajasthan government's plan to send VVIPs on tours using old aircraft, seems to lie buried in files. The civil aviation department's efforts to change the AgustaWestland helicopters in the last three months, have not succeeded.
Two attempts to hire a plane and helicopter have similarly fallen flat.
Now the government is relying on two old aircraft and an almost discarded helicopter. It has once again begun planning the purchase of a new helicopter and two medium sized jets.
According to sources, after the failure of the process of disposing of the AgustaWestland AW-109 ePower and purchasing a replacement, a high level committee headed by the chief secretary considered buying a new aircraft.
Apparently, the committee even decided that the government should hire an aircraft since buying a new one would take about a year and a half.
Availability
The government had issued a tender on 28 November, 2016 for hiring a ten-seater twin engine midsize jet and a twin-engine helicopter for a year. The government had asked for a 15-year old jet capable of flying a distance of 3200 nautical miles and up to a height of 41,000 feet. No company showed any interest in the specifications of this tender till its 15 December deadline.
This year, the government issued another tender on 6 January, 2017 for a ten-seater mid-size jet and a twin engine helicopter for a short period from 11 January to 20 February, 2017. The range demanded this time was 2600 nautical miles. But no company came forward. A company from Mumbai showed interest in providing the helicopter but the contract has not been awarded till date.
The case of AW 109
The government's attempts at selling the controversial AW 109 helicopter of AgustaWestland and buy a new one, have failed. In November, the government had tried to sell the AW 109 and buy a new one from the same company but two other helicopter manufacturing companies objected saying that the tendering process was biased towards the old company. .
The government had bought the AW 109 ePower helicopter in 2005 for use by VVIPs. However, in 2011 when the then chief minister Ashok Gehlot was on board, it had to make an emergency landing due to a technical snag. The chopper is still parked in the state hangar.
Though apparently the helicopter is in running condition, it is not being used as there are fears it may jeopardise the security of VVIPs. The government tried disposing it off twice in June and September 2015 through an auction but no one came forward to buy it in the wake of the AgustaWestland controversy. Meanwhile the government has been spending Rs 3-4 lakhs every year just for its upkeep. Presently, the Rajasthan government is making do with a Kingair C -90- bought in 1989, an AgustaWestland AW109 ePower bought in 2005 and a Superking air B-200 aircraft bought in 2006.
First published: 6 February 2017, 22:30 IST
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