aryan2007
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New Delhi, Nov 27 - Defence Minister A.K. Antony's repeated insistence of transparency in purchases of military hardware has resulted in the cancellation of an almost signed, sealed and delivered deal for the purchase of 197 Eurocopter Fennec copters for the Indian Army.
For almost a year now, it has been widely reported that the Fennec, manufactured by a four-nation European consortium, had all but bagged the $550 million order, even as the other contender, Bell Helicopter, cried foul.
Now, it emerges that none of the two machines on offer met the required parameters but certain individuals in the Indian military establishment unfairly favoured the Fennec.
The issue blew into the open following a media report that National Security Advisor M.K. Narayanan, on learning of this impropriety, shot off a missive to the defence ministry that quickly moved to scrap the deal.
The defence ministry was quick to deny the NSA had a role to play, saying its own system of checks and balances had zeroed in on the wrongdoing.
'The deal has not been scrapped but it would be right to assume that it is but scrapped,' an official said.
At issue is the machine Eurocopter sent for the trials: it was a civilian variant that the company said was similar in capabilities to the military version.
Asked whether the Indian Army would now float a fresh global tender for the helicopters, the official answered in the affirmative.
On whether the Fennec would be permitted to bid again, the official said: 'Yes, but what would be kept in mind is what has happened (during the current evaluation trials).'
Five contenders were initially in the fray: Eurocopter, Bell, Italy's Agusta, and Russia's Kamov and Kazan. The list was then narrowed down to the Eurocopter AS 550 C3 Fennec and the Bell-407.
The Bell-407 dropped out last year after the machine it sent for evaluation could not perform a three-axis vector, an essential requirement for flying in areas like the Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir.
The three-axis vector enables the helicopter perform a 'U' like manoeuvre to navigate adverse weather conditions in mountainous areas.
in.news.yahoo.com/071127/43/6nqi0.html
For almost a year now, it has been widely reported that the Fennec, manufactured by a four-nation European consortium, had all but bagged the $550 million order, even as the other contender, Bell Helicopter, cried foul.
Now, it emerges that none of the two machines on offer met the required parameters but certain individuals in the Indian military establishment unfairly favoured the Fennec.
The issue blew into the open following a media report that National Security Advisor M.K. Narayanan, on learning of this impropriety, shot off a missive to the defence ministry that quickly moved to scrap the deal.
The defence ministry was quick to deny the NSA had a role to play, saying its own system of checks and balances had zeroed in on the wrongdoing.
'The deal has not been scrapped but it would be right to assume that it is but scrapped,' an official said.
At issue is the machine Eurocopter sent for the trials: it was a civilian variant that the company said was similar in capabilities to the military version.
Asked whether the Indian Army would now float a fresh global tender for the helicopters, the official answered in the affirmative.
On whether the Fennec would be permitted to bid again, the official said: 'Yes, but what would be kept in mind is what has happened (during the current evaluation trials).'
Five contenders were initially in the fray: Eurocopter, Bell, Italy's Agusta, and Russia's Kamov and Kazan. The list was then narrowed down to the Eurocopter AS 550 C3 Fennec and the Bell-407.
The Bell-407 dropped out last year after the machine it sent for evaluation could not perform a three-axis vector, an essential requirement for flying in areas like the Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir.
The three-axis vector enables the helicopter perform a 'U' like manoeuvre to navigate adverse weather conditions in mountainous areas.
in.news.yahoo.com/071127/43/6nqi0.html
