Pawan Hans eyes six BSF choppers

New Delhi: India’s largest helicopter operator Pawan Hans is negotiating with the BSF to acquire its six Mi-17 helicopters on lease. In fact, the negotiations have got stuck over the number of flying hours that Pawan Hans is willing to yield in lieu of acquiring these helicopters. It is estimated that total worth of these six helicopters in the international market is around Rs 280 cr to Rs 300 cr, sources close to the deal told SundayET.
Though BSF, which is primarily engaged in providing security at the border areas, bought six helicopters more than three years ago, five of those have been lying idle in Delhi’s Safdarganj airport (behind Rajiv Gandhi Bhavan) as the paramilitary force possesses just three pilots to run its fleet. Significantly, getting a pilot is not an easy job as civilian pilots are not allowed to fly BSF choppers.
When contacted, director general of BSF, A K Mitra confirmed that they have been working on a “suitable sharing model” so that the fleet can be optimally utilised.
According to sources, the BSF may lease out four to five choppers out of six that they currently have. Each of these troop carriers has a capacity of carrying more than 34 military personnel. However, once the seats are fitted like any other civilian chopper, each one will have the capacity to carry around 15 to 18 passengers.
29/07/07 Raja Awasthi & Shantanu Nandan Sharma/Economic Times

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Categories: General Aviation Jul 2007