Fighter jets’ parts on sale in Peshawar scrap market

[Naveed Yaseen]

* Scrap dealers to receive remaining 11 planes, a helicopter on Oct 9 under auction agreement

By Akhtar Amin

PESHAWAR: The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) sold 13 scrapped MiG fighter planes and a disintegrated helicopter to scrap dealers at an auction, who have put them on sale in the open market in the city.

The PAF sold the warplanes for the first time in Peshawar and out of 13 planes, local dealers have put the parts of two of the planes on sale in the open market of Usmania Colony in Kotla Mohsin Khan area.

Abaseen Khan, a scrap dealer, told Daily Times on Tuesday that he and nine other scrap dealers had bought the planes at an auction held at the PAF base at the Peshawar International Airport in August. “We (local dealers) bought the planes for Rs 4 million and have put their parts on sale in the open market,” Khan said, adding that they did not want the planes broken down into parts but the PAF officials did not agree. He said two of the planes were in good condition and the dealers wanted to get them whole, but the PAF officials told them the planes had to be broken down into parts before the dealers could take them. Abaseen said the PAF officials made it clear that the plane components could be sold and used as ‘scrap only’ and warned them of stern action in case of any contravention.

Receive: Under the auction agreement, the scrap dealers would receive the remaining 11 MiG planes and a helicopter on October 9. Another dealer said one of the planes sold at the auction had crashed during the recent military operation in Bajaur.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...009_pg7_16