New Delhi: India’s 2012 order for 75 Swiss Pilatus basic trainer aircraft (BTA) for the Indian Air Force (IAF) has run into rough weather with the finance wing of the Ministry of Defence pointing out that 88 per cent of the acquisition cost over 30 years will be incurred in just seven years because of “inbuilt flaws” in the Rs 4,000-crore deal signed during the UPA rule.
The Ministry of Defence (Finance) raised the red flag in January this year after the IAF moved a proposal for Follow On Support Contract (FOSC) for five years at an estimated cost of Rs 507 crore for maintenance and related issues of Pilatus aircraft — almost three times the cost for repairs and maintenance presumed at the time of evaluation of the lowest bidder (L1).
The Indian Express has learnt that in August 2013, the Ministry of Finance, then under P Chidambaram, while giving a no-objection certificate, had asked the Ministry of Defence, then under A K Antony, to fix future cost escalation through “clarification of fixity of contractual prices given in the pre-bid conference”.
05/03/15 Appu Esthose Suresh/Indian Express
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The Ministry of Defence (Finance) raised the red flag in January this year after the IAF moved a proposal for Follow On Support Contract (FOSC) for five years at an estimated cost of Rs 507 crore for maintenance and related issues of Pilatus aircraft — almost three times the cost for repairs and maintenance presumed at the time of evaluation of the lowest bidder (L1).
The Indian Express has learnt that in August 2013, the Ministry of Finance, then under P Chidambaram, while giving a no-objection certificate, had asked the Ministry of Defence, then under A K Antony, to fix future cost escalation through “clarification of fixity of contractual prices given in the pre-bid conference”.
05/03/15 Appu Esthose Suresh/Indian Express
