Leasing helicopters more transparent, avoids maintenance costs, says PM

KUALA LUMPUR: The leasing of helicopters is a more transparent process and avoids the financial burden of maintenance costs, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The Prime Minister said leasing also saw negotiations only held between governments without the need for any agents.

“Leasing avoids the financial burden of maintenance which has been a big problem, costing billions of ringgit annually.

“That is why I agreed to continue the leasing process but we have also expanded it,” Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, said during Prime Minister’s Question Time on Thursday (Nov 27).

Through the leasing agreement, Anwar said the vehicles must have a readiness and operational level of at least 85%.

Anwar added that countries like Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines also practiced the leasing model due to the maintenance, repair and overhaul aspects.

He said Malaysia also imposed another condition, which is for the company to cooperate with training institutions like Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and under the Armed Forces to ensure the country’s preparedness as a hub.

“For Malaysia, it may be in Melaka as it is near the Batu Berendam Airport, which we have agreed to be a training institute,” he said.

The Prime Minister said all specifications requested by related Malaysian agencies on the helicopters must be fulfilled by the company.

“Some may not feel comfortable with our approach but we are doing this on a government-to-government basis with no commissions or agents,” he added.

Recently, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin was reported as saying that the Armed Forces and other safety agencies will be leasing 28 helicopters under a 15-year contract worth RM16.5 bil.