The Robinson 44 helicopter which crashed in Aarey colony on Sunday was owned by Pawan Hans for 15 years and finally sold in 2009 as the government-owned company found it too expensive to carry out repairs. For four years before it was sold, it stayed parked in their hangar in Delhi as it was deemed unfit to fly. After it was bought by an aircraft charter company , it underwent extensive repairs before it was airborne again.One of the key areas that the Aircraft Accident Investigation team has been looking into is the repair and maintenance schedule of the ill-fated aircraft.
"The helicopter's certificate of airworthiness (that deems the aircraft safe to fly) expired in 2005. By then it was facing a number of mechanical problems. Initially, the plan was to repair the aircraft and use it for pilot training, but the cost of repair and engine upgradation was close to Rs1crore. So after getting an approval from the ministry of civil aviation, a tender was floated in 2008 and the helicopter and its spare parts were sold for Rs 25 lakh in 2009," said a Pawan Hans official. He disputed rumours that the helicopter was sold as scrap. "No, had it been sold as scrap, we would have cancelled its registration (VTPHB) before selling it," he said. "The aircraft needed extensive repairs and it wasn't profitable for us to buy all the spare parts and keep this chopper running," he added.
Pawan Hans bought the aircraft in 1994, bringing the number of Robinson 44s in its fleet to two. But the one bought earlier was damaged in a crash and this remaining chopper was chartered by GAIL, which used it to carry out pipeline surveys across the country . "It was flown extensively till 2005, but due to constant mechanical problems and difficulty in procuring spare parts, it was grounded," he added.
14/12/16 Manju V/The Times Of India
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"The helicopter's certificate of airworthiness (that deems the aircraft safe to fly) expired in 2005. By then it was facing a number of mechanical problems. Initially, the plan was to repair the aircraft and use it for pilot training, but the cost of repair and engine upgradation was close to Rs1crore. So after getting an approval from the ministry of civil aviation, a tender was floated in 2008 and the helicopter and its spare parts were sold for Rs 25 lakh in 2009," said a Pawan Hans official. He disputed rumours that the helicopter was sold as scrap. "No, had it been sold as scrap, we would have cancelled its registration (VTPHB) before selling it," he said. "The aircraft needed extensive repairs and it wasn't profitable for us to buy all the spare parts and keep this chopper running," he added.
Pawan Hans bought the aircraft in 1994, bringing the number of Robinson 44s in its fleet to two. But the one bought earlier was damaged in a crash and this remaining chopper was chartered by GAIL, which used it to carry out pipeline surveys across the country . "It was flown extensively till 2005, but due to constant mechanical problems and difficulty in procuring spare parts, it was grounded," he added.
14/12/16 Manju V/The Times Of India
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