Kapal Terbang APMM tersadai sebab Kerajaan UMNO/BN dah tak ada duit?

Dua buah kapalterbang milik Agensi Penguatkuasaan Maritim Malaysia (APMM) dilaporkan telah tersadai setelah memasuki perkhidmatan kira-kira dua tahun yang lalu berikutan kekangan kewangan.


Berikutan dengan kekangan kewangan itu telah menyebabkan APMM tidak menandatangani sebarang perjanjian dengan mana-mana syarikat yang berkelayakan untuk menyelenggara pesawat ini.

Setelah tidak boleh diterbangkan (grounding) kedua buah kapal terbang dari jenis Bombardier Aerospace CL415MP disimpan di dalam hangar di Subang. Sebuah darinya telah disimpan disitu sejak dari tahun lepas manakala sebuah lagi lebih kurang setengah tahun lalu… seterusnya korang baca di bawah..

Hairan ya.. negara kita dikatakan kaya oleh pemimpin-pemimpin UMNO/BN tapi mengapa kita tidak mampu untuk membiayai kontrak penyelengaraan untuk dua buah kapal terbang ini?

The Sun juga melaporkan harga bagi sebuah pesawat ini ialah RM98Juta oleh itu jumlah bagi dua buah ialah RM196 Juta..

Harganya lebih murah dari dana yang diperuntukkan untuk keluarga Shahrizat untuk membela lembu iaitu RM257 Juta, bayangkan andaikata dana untuk membela lembu itu diserahkan kepada APMM, sudah tentu dua buah kapal terbang itu boleh terbang.

Selain itu kalau tidak diperuntukkn RM111 Juta untuk Permata jagaan Rosmah yang tak tahu dibawah kementerian mana letaknya, kapal terbang itu tentu boleh terbang..

No money to fly

PETALING JAYA (Dec 26, 2011): The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has had to ground its two amphibious planes – barely two years after putting the aircraft into service – due to budget constraints.

Since their grounding, the two Bombardier Aerospace CL415MP have been sitting in a hangar in Subang. One has been parked there since late last year, while the other has been grounded for about half a year.

According to the agency's 2010 annual report, the planes had to be grounded as the agency has yet to sign the maintenance contract for the amphibious planes as MMEA has not been allocated enough funds for the purpose.

A tender for the contract was issued earlier this year to AJ Aeroservices Sdn Bhd as it was the local partner of Bombardier Canada, which undertook maintenance for both amphibious airplanes during its warranty period.

However, the Treasury later told the MMEA to renegotiate the maintenance contract with AJ Aeroservices as the amount was above the agency's budget. Until now, however, the contract has not been signed and the two planes remain grounded.

The cost of the contract for a two-year period could not be determined but industry insiders say amphibious planes are by nature maintenance extensive, and they believed the cost would be higher than similar sized turbo-prop aircraft.

Apart from firefighting, the amphibious planes can be used for search and rescue and maritime surveillance although only one aircraft, serial number M71-01, has been fitted with the specialised mission equipment including two side-looking airborne radars, a forward-looking infrared radar, an airborne maritime surveillance system and other avionics and communications equipment.

theSun understands that Chief Secretary of the Government Tan Sri Sidek Hassan is aware of the contract impasse and has scheduled meetings with the Treasury officials to overcome the problem.

While the "best solution" seems to be for the government to increase the budget for MMEA to cover the maintenance for the two planes, it is understood that even if the maintenance contract is to be signed immediately, it will be several months before the aircraft can be made flyable as they need to undergo extended maintenance.

An industry insider told theSun that this is because even after undergoing maintenance, both aircraft need to be certified airworthy by the Directorate of General Technical Airworthiness (DGTA) which is responsible for regulating the technical airworthiness of state-registered aircraft.

Furthermore, due to extended grounding, the ratings of the crew of the amphibious planes – including pilots and quartermasters – have expired, meaning the MMEA personnel will have to relearn everything they had learnt when the planes were in services.

"Everyone, from the crew and other personnel will have to start all over again. They have to relearn what they had learnt when the aircraft was in service. It is as if they had never operated the aircraft."

theSun understands that to save money, a single 415MP instructor pilot will be sent overseas for re-certification before returning home to instruct the rest of the crews. Most of the flight personnel were sent to Canada to be certified on the planes previously.

In its annual report, MMEA admitted that extensive corrosion had affected its first 415MP aircraft which has performed more than 1,000 landings at sea.

It also noted that both aircraft's air-condition and auxiliary power units failed on numerous occasions and Bombardier, which had admitted its fault, is looking to resolve the problems.

The government ordered the planes from Bombardier in June 2008 and the first aircraft was delivered in January 2009 while the second arrived in early 2010.

The cost of the procurement was never announced but checks by theSun indicate that the list price for a 415 aircraft – without the special equipment – is around RM98 million.

The MMEA, which was established in 2005 following the enactment of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency Act 2004, is the sole agency to patrol and monitor the country's waters since Aug 1.

Apart from the amphibious planes, MMEA operates 130 boats and vessels, and six helicopters with some 5,000 personnel to ensure safety, security and sovereignty of the Malaysian Maritime Zone.

MMEA operates two types of helicopters – three Eurocopter Dauphin and three Agusta-Westland AW139.

Incidentally, it is learnt that MMEA has also not signed any permanent maintenance contract for the six helicopters which are only being made operational under a "running contract" (temporary arrangement) - theSundaily