Saifullah Sani
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Croatia has offered a range of surplus military aircraft for sale, including seven Mil Mi-24V 'Hind' attack helicopters. Source: OSCE
Croatia is looking to sell a wide range of its surplus Croatian Air Force aircraft, with the state-owned Alan Agency issuing a new call to tender.
The country hopes to sell seven Mil Mi-24V 'Hind' attack helicopters (manufactured from 1978 to 1987), two Antonov An-32B 'Curl' tactical transport aircraft (manufactured in 1991 and 1993), and six Pilatus PC-9 turboprop trainer aircraft (three PC-9s manufactured between 1986 and 1991 and three PC-Ms built in 1993).
The aircraft have been offered for sale individually or in batches. The country has set a deadline of 28 January for interested parties to submit a letter of intent, backed by a returnable deposit of EUR15,000 (USD17,574). Potential bidders will then be invited to inspect the aircraft, with an offer expected no less than 14 days after inspection.
ANALYSIS
The principal reasoning behind the sale of the aircraft is financial, caused by the declining state of the Croatian economy and its defence budget, although other reasons are also at play.
Croatia's Mi-24Vs were in limited use after the conflicts of the 1990s, and were withdrawn from service over a decade ago. Their sale has previously been contemplated on multiple occasions, but at least once a prospective sale is understood to have been squashed by active opposition from Moscow.
The two An-32Bs were recently used in Croatian Air Force service, including in both Iraq and Afghanistan, but with the aircraft due to undergo a period of deep maintenance Croatia now seeks to sell them. No official thought was given to their conversion for a naval surveillance role, although such aircraft are sorely missed in Croatia.
Meanwhile, the sale of the PC-9s is driven partially by the imbalance between the number of training aircraft Croatia has for its pilots and its meagre number of available supersonic fighter aircraft. However, with Croatia's MiG-21 upgrade programme finally reaching completion, and with demand for foreign pilot training growing, the sale of the PC-9s may be reconsidered in the near future.
Croatia to sell surplus military aircraft - IHS Jane's 360
