From: ynesiah@skat.usc.edu (Yogala Nesiah)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.sri-lanka
Subject: Brother can you spare a few million dollars?
Date: 16 Dec 1992 21:30:08 -0800
Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: skat.usc.edu
Summary: Dingiri Banda is an Aircraft Expert

NOTE: The wire-report was taken from another forum with the 	=
	prior permission of the original poster.

	A wire report mentioned that Sri Lanka has decided to buy 
	4 Pucara aircraft and the airforce does not want these aircraft. 
	More details follow in the wire report that is attached to 
	this post.
	
	(READ IT AND COME BACK TO MY DIATRIBE) :->
--------wire report----------------------------MHO follows--------------


                     Copyright 1992 Agence France Presse
                              Agence France Presse
                               December  15, 1992

HEADLINE: Colombo buys four Pucara aircraft for 70 million dollars
DATELINE: COLOMBO
    Sri Lanka  has bought four Pucara ground attack aircraft from Argentina for
70 million dollars, press reports here Tuesday quoted Prime Minister Dingiri
Banda Wijetunga as saying. Military officials said an agreement was signed last
month for the supply of the Pucaras to boost the combat capability of the air
force in the battle against separatist Tamil guerrillas, who have no aircraft.
The deal included a spares backup for about 15 years and a stock of spare parts
worth about 10 million dollars, military sources here said. It was not
immediately clear when the aircraft would be delivered.  Wijetunga told
parliament Monday that Argentina had stopped manufacturing the twin-turboprop
Pucara, which was used in the Falklands War against Britain, in 1986. The plane
is fitted with engines made in France and Paris was enforcing a ban on aircraft
spares and arms to  Sri Lanka  along with other western countries because it is
a conflict zone, Wijetunga said.  Press reports had earlier said there was
considerable opposition within the air force to the Pucara purchase by those
favouring the more modern single-engine Tucano from Brazil to replace an ageing
fleet of Italian-made Siai Marchetti planes.  The Sri Lankan air force modified
the Siai Marchetti trainers into bombers in the battle against the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the island's northeast.  It has also used
transports to drop crude "barrel bombs" on Tiger positions.  The air force is
however plagued with chronic problems involving its fleet of Chinese-built Y-8
and Y-12 transport aircraft. One Y-8 crashed over the northern war zone in July
leaving 19 people dead.  The remaining Y-8 has been grounded for want of
spares.



----end of wire-report--

Is it just me or does this seem like a stupid thing to do.
Considering the fact that the Air Force made a huge blunder on the
Chinese air craft (shortage of spare parts) and also considering
the fact that the Pucara aircraft were discontinued in 1989
(potential problem with spare parts) you would think that the
powers that be would purchase something that would stand
a better chance of surviving (spare part availability).

Apparently the Air Force did not want the Pucara aircraft.
Then who did? The guy who gets the commission and  the 
people who get  commission from him. Simple! Patriotic? Hah!
I know that there is one dude in Colombo who is the Sri Lankan
General Sales Agent/Sole Agent for Sia Marchetti aircraft.
As a result of this, he got a commission for every Sia Marchetyti
aircraft the airforce bought. Even though he did not do one
bit of work. Apparently they (the airforce) were sold on
the SiaMarchetti aircrafts by the foreign pilots they hired to 
fly for them. The agent in Colombo sat back and collected the commission
in millions of dollars. 

I bet there is another agent for these Pucara aircraft (could be the same guy).

Wouldntthe money be better spent if they were to spend that $ 70 million 
dollars on improving the "backward" schools that have been bashed
around on scsl?

Think about it. US$ 70,000,000.00 = SL Rs. 2,800,000,000.00

2.8 billion Ruppees would pay a lot of salaries (teacher) and build quite a 
few libraries and science labs and clasrooms.

- Vasee