Mercenary’s War
Chapter 1382 - 1,364: Flying Coffin Manufacturer

Chapter 1382: Chapter 1,364: Flying Coffin Manufacturer

Ten million dollars for forty planes, that’s 250,000 each.

For Gao Yang, buying military equipment in Ukraine isn’t about buying in bulk; if it’s priced individually, he’d definitely turn away. Here, it’s all about clearing inventory.

Gao Yang was quite unfamiliar with the An-32 aircraft. He couldn’t possibly know every plane in the world well, but since it was a medium to short-range transport aircraft, it couldn’t be too small. Ten million for forty planes seemed like a deal, but he needed to figure out what exactly was the situation with these planes because buying forty non-operational junk for ten million wasn’t going to work.

After contemplating for a moment, Gao Yang nodded slightly and said in a deep voice, "Sounds promising, but please give me detailed information about the An-32 aircraft and, most importantly, the condition of these planes."

Selin nodded and then spoke softly, "The An-32 is a development of the An-26 aircraft, suitable for use at high-altitude airports. It has a more powerful engine than the An-26, with a fuselage almost identical to the An-26, except that the wing’s outer span is longer and larger, equipped with slats on the tailplane leading edge, and larger ventral fins. It uses low-pressure tires for takeoff and landing on simple runways. Other than that, everything is the same as the An-26."

Gao Yang nodded with satisfaction, smiling, "What’s the payload capacity? And the crew?"

"Pilot, co-pilot, navigator, radio operator, flight engineer make up the full crew complement. Inside there is a movable electric winch capable of hoisting up to two tons of cargo at a time. On both sides of the cabin, there are folding seats capable of carrying 39 fully armed paratroopers or accommodating 24 stretchers plus one medical staff member."

After finishing, Selin didn’t wait for Gao Yang to ask and proactively explained, "The An-32’s maximum payload is 6.7 tons, normal payload is 5.5 tons. If flying with maximum payload at maximum fuel capacity, the range is 860 kilometers. With maximum fuel capacity and a payload of 5.5 tons, the range reaches 2000 kilometers. If empty, the maximum range can reach 3000 kilometers."

Gao Yang touched his chin, contemplating for a moment, then asked in a deep voice, "Which countries have equipped this type of aircraft? Also, how old is this batch of planes?"

Selin hesitated a moment and replied insecurely, "Well, only India has equipped the An-32. India placed an order in 1982, started deliveries in 1984, and completed deliveries in 1992."

Gao Yang laughed, "The earliest are from 1984? Oh, these are quite old planes."

Selin promptly replied, "But these planes are in good condition and have been used as India’s mainstay medium-range transport aircraft all along."

Transport and bomber planes often serve for decades. Even planes from 1982 are fine if maintenance and upkeep are properly done. It’s normal to use them for another decade or so, even if they’ve fallen behind somewhat.

Gao Yang lightly tapped the table with his fingers, thought for a moment, and asked in a deep voice, "Why are Indian planes here, and how can you sell them?"

Swallowing his saliva, Selin replied quietly, "The planes are here because India and Ukraine signed a contract for a total of 104 An-32 transport planes, forty of which were sent to Ukraine for maintenance and upgrades by Antonov ASTC, while the remaining sixty-four are in India, maintained and upgraded by Ukrainian experts."

After he finished, Selin looked up at Gao Yang and said, "Besides, I’m not the only one selling these planes; there are many people involved, so the ten million price cannot be changed."

Gao Yang raised his hand, frowned and said, "Wait a moment, I just thought of something. So, for decades, this batch of planes has been maintained in India, and the only company capable of doing this is HAL, right?"

Selin gave a few wry smiles and said softly, "Yes."

Gao Yang waved his hand and said loudly, "Sorry, planes handled by HAL, I’m afraid I can’t and won’t take them."

HAL stands for Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, the infamous Widow Maker, flying coffin manufacturer.

HAL is so notorious that the Indian Air Force has the highest number of crashes in the world, and most of the aircraft that crashed were handled by HAL.

From 1992 to 2004, HAL assembled two MiG-21s, overhauled eight, and eight crashed.

Assembled one MiG-21 BISON, overhauled one, and one crashed.

Assembled three Jaguars, overhauled five, and six crashed.

Overhauled four Mirage-2000s, all crashed.

Assembled three MiG-27s, overhauled three, and four crashed.

Overhauled three MiG-29s, all crashed.

During these years, of the 29 Indian Air Force crashes, 26 were manufactured, overhauled, or upgraded by HAL. This isn’t the total number of crashes in India either; the total is much higher. It’s important to clarify.

If we talk about the total number of crashes for the Indian Air Force, they crashed 52 planes in 2003 alone. Most of these planes went through HAL, just the timing varied, because HAL is India’s largest defense contractor.

In 2002, India had an upgrade plan for MiG-21 fighter jets, and the Ministry of Defense boldly awarded the contract to HAL. The Ministry was audacious enough to award, HAL was audacious enough to take it, but it was pity for the pilots who dared to fly upgraded MiG-21s. After deliveries, they kept crashing until the Ministry couldn’t take it anymore and hurriedly canceled the remaining contracts with HAL, handing them over to Russia for upgrades. Of course, handing contracts to Russia was allowing India to prepare for substantial fleecing.

Oh, and in 2009, the Indian Air Force crashed an An-32, which was also overhauled by HAL.

The Widow Maker, so formidable!

Gao Yang was actually interested in the An-32 because he wasn’t sure where to specialize in selling such aircraft, but using them for himself was nice as well. Such medium to short-range transport aircraft were suitable for his company, but since it was for personal use, planes handled by HAL were absolutely off-limits, even though they were nearly given away for free.

Seeing Gao Yang’s disappointed expression, Selin became somewhat anxious and hurriedly said, "Planes handled by HAL truly mustn’t be bought, but this batch was sent to Ukraine. Antonov Manufacturing Plant is carrying out thorough overhaul and upgrades on these planes, so there’s no need to worry about safety! Plus, the planes have undergone upgrades, and some equipment has been replaced and upgraded; these aren’t the planes just sent from India."

Gao Yang rubbed his hands and said with a conflicted expression, "Overall speaking, Indian planes still make one uneasy. Moreover, only India has An-32s, and these planes indeed belong to India. If I purchase them, then who would I sell them to? Who would dare take such a large batch of planes with owners? Buddy, this business isn’t easy to do."

Selin said in a deep voice, "Regarding this, it’s no problem. An-32s look very similar to An-26s, and many countries use An-26s, such as Poland, Hungary, Romania, Iraq, Somalia, Syria. These planes will definitely have their paint jobs changed; once changed, who could recognize them?"

Gao Yang tilted his head in interest and asked, "You just mentioned Somalia has An-26s?"

Selin nodded, "Yes, they were aided by the Soviet Union back in the day. Somalia still has a few An-26s, used between Mogadishu and Beira Airports, serving as passenger planes. Of course, they’re passenger-cargo hybrid planes."

Gao Yang was excited now, knowing there’s an airport in Berbera. The airport is very simple, without even a paved runway, but the fact that Berbera regularly had An-26s land and take off was news to him.

Having negotiated with the Skull Gang, taking Berbera means joint administration between Solar System Company and the Skull Gang. Sending a batch of disguised An-32s for business use there really is feasible.

Not acquiring these planes would be a breach of justice; Gao Yang immediately decided in his mind—no matter if they were Indian-owned, he wanted them.

Gao Yang maintained his composure, slowly nodded, and spoke in a deep voice, "Alright, now I want to know the feasibility of this operation. You can’t just take the money and tell me the planes at the airport are mine and drive them away. You need a concrete plan. How exactly will these planes be delivered?"

Selin smiled, "Once you pay, you can fly the planes away anytime. Antonov Manufacturing Plant has its own test pilots, but if you want them to help fly the planes away, you’ll need to pay extra. Of course, you can also find your own pilots."

Gao Yang shook his head and said in a deep voice, "You’re saying as long as the plane leaves the ground, the transaction is considered successful, right?"

Selin nodded, "Yes."

Gao Yang sighed and spoke in a deep voice, "Forty planes, flying them all away at once, do you think that’s possible?"

Selin contemplated for a moment and shook his head, "This indeed isn’t very feasible, but the planes are there. You can take them away gradually. The delivery to India isn’t until next year, so during this time, you can slowly take them away."

Gao Yang shook his head and smiled, "Buddy, business isn’t done this way. I don’t quite agree with your plan. Now I have a business proposal; would you like to hear it?" (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users should go to m.qidian.com to read.)