India to cancel Rs 3600 crore-chopper deal with Augusta

[[Bregs]]

No one was named because probably before money changed hands the hell broke loose and all was open

 

[Bang Galore]

NOT ONE PERSON has been arrested or charged in India or Italy over THIS case involving the FINMECCANICA subsidiary Augusta Westland and the deal for AW-101s for the IAF. NOT ONE. India was dragged into an internal Italian matter and actually Augusta Westland too- they were innocent in this entire affair.


If this goes to arbitration India WILL lose. Hopefully sanity prevails and the remaining 9 units are delivered and all sides win.

Italian Police Arrest Finmeccanica CEO - WSJ.com
Italian police arrest Finmeccanica chief - FT.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/13/b...a-chief-is-arrested-in-bribery-case.html?_r=0
Finmeccanica head arrested over India bribe allegations | Reuters

 

[Capt.Popeye]

To compare the safety features on the Mi-17 even the latest V5 spec to the AW-101 is an utter joke.

The AW-101 is hardly the "cat's whiskers".
Suitable Helicopters are availabe with Sikorsky too. Now let me tell you about the past history of Westland (the ancestor of Agusta Westland). India bought Westland WG-30 Helicopters alongwith AS Dauphins in the end of the 1980s during the regime of Rajeev Gandhi. Though the technical assessment went against the Westlands, the then Govt. split the deal 50:50 between the two competitors to buy a total of 40 for Pawan Hans. They were to be primarily used in the demanding Offshore Oilfield supply business in the Arabian Sea. Within 10 years, the Westland had become JUNK and were finally sold as SCRAP. The Dauphins are still flying with Pawan Hans in J&K, Uttaranchal, Arunachal Pradesh and in the Andaman and Nicobar Is.

Says a lot does it not?
BTW, the Dauphins are the "Papas" of the Chinese Z-9 helicopters.

 

[GR!FF!N]

@Capt.Popeye @Abingdonboy

why can't HAL offer Dhruv for this VVIP transport role??We have one.of course not as capable as AW-101,but enough.also,we have custom made 8 seater VVIP version of Dhruv.

 

[Abingdonboy]

@Capt.Popeye @Abingdonboy

why can't HAL offer Dhruv for this VVIP transport role??We have one.of course not as capable as AW-101,but enough.also,we have custom made 8 seater VVIP version of Dhruv.

Already answered that mate:

http://www.defence.pk/forums/indian...0-crore-chopper-deal-augusta.html#post4872186

 

[Dandpatta]

If our VVIPs were using Mi-8 in bad condition we would be like…
Oh please God let that heli crash and don't let these bastards survive……
our VVIPs like their bulletproof cars or private PIAs flight……

On the Indian side, the feelings are as mutual as on your side. The current lot of Indian VVIPs (especially the political command and control class) are the most disliked lot .

 

[Capt.Popeye]

@Capt.Popeye @Abingdonboy

why can't HAL offer Dhruv for this VVIP transport role??We have one.of course not as capable as AW-101,but enough.also,we have custom made 8 seater VVIP version of Dhruv.

The IAF or specificlly the SPG desires a larger capacity chopper than that-18 seater or something. Otherwise even the Bell 412s should work.

 

[Bang Galore]

VVIP chopper deal: Middleman Haschke arrested in Switzerland

MILAN: Swiss authorities have arrested Guido Ralph Haschke, the alleged middleman in the AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter deal, on charges of bribery, Italian media reported on Thursday.


According to Italian news website, La Repubblica, Haschke could be brought to Italy by next week in case he prefers not to appeal against extradition proceedings before the Swiss Federal court.

The court in Switzerland ruled that Haschke can be extradited to Italy, Italian news agency ANSA reported.

The Rs 3,600-crore VVIP AgustaWestland helicopter supply contract is under probe of Italian and Indian agencies for alleged kickbacks paid to Indian officials - including former IAF Chief SP Tyagi - to clinch the deal.

Tyagi has denied allegations of any kickbacks. Swiss-American Haschke is one of the 13 accused in the FIR filed by CBI which is probing the bribery allegations in the deal.

"Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa (both middlemen) managed to send 5.6 million euros through Mohali-based IDS Infotech and Chandigarh-based Aeromatrix Info Solutions Private Ltd to India and kept the remaining amount of about 24.30 million euros received from AgustaWestland with themselves in the account of IDS Tunisia," according to the CBI FIR in the case.

The Italian prosecutor who carried out the preliminary inquiry here has alleged that the CEO of Finmeccanica, the parent company of the UK-based AgustaWestland, had used services of middlemen to bribe Indian officials.

CBI which carried out the probe in India had named 13 individuals, including Tyagi and European middlemen Carlo Gerosa, Christian Michel and Guido Haschke, in the FIR as accused, in connection with the alleged bribery.

The Indian probe agency has alleged that during his tenure as the IAF chief, Tyagi and "with his approval" the Air Force "conceded to reduce the service ceiling for VVIP helicopters from 6,000 m to 4,500 m as mandatory (although) it was vehemently opposing the same on grounds of security constraints and other related reasons".

VVIP chopper deal: Middleman Haschke arrested in Switzerland - The Times of India

 

[[Bregs]]

Its better to cancel this deal now