Jump to content
MalaysianWings - Malaysia's Premier Aviation Portal
Sri Ramani K.

RM50m jet engine stolen from RMAF base

Recommended Posts

this is probably the funniest thing i've ever heard. for someone to transport it out of the hangar.. :pardon:

 

http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/articles/20091219074407/Article/index_html

 

Alang Bendahara

 

KUALA LUMPUR: A missing Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) jet fighter engine worth RM50 million is believed to have been sold to a black market buyer in Europe.

 

The General Electric J85-21A afterburner turbojet engine which served as a powerplant for the single-seater F-5E Tiger 11 and RF-5E Tigereye, went missing from the RMAF airbase in Sungai Besi here late last year during a routine maintenance service.

 

Both the armed forces and police confirmed the case when contacted by the New Straits Times yesterday.

 

Federal Commercial Criminal Investigation Department deputy director I Datuk Nooryah Mat Anvar said a joint investigation by the armed forces and police have uncovered the involvement of four locals. Police had questioned all of them.

 

“The four included the engine buyer, the seller and Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) personnel who assisted in stealing it,” said Nooryah.

 

Police have submitted their investigation papers on the case to the Attorney-General’s Chambers for further action.

 

Nooryah said the armed forces had filed a police report in January.

 

“In the course of our investigation, we worked closely with the armed forces

and RMAF. Many RMAF personnel as well as members of the public were questioned,” she said.

 

Armed Forces chief Gen Tan Sri Azizan Ariffin said they had turned to the police after their own investigation into the stolen jet engine revealed the involvement of civilians.

 

Azizan, speaking to the New Straits Times after attending the national-level Maal Hijrah celebration at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre

yesterday, said RMAF documents showed that the jet engine should have been stored at the warehouse at the RMAF Sg Besi air base.

 

Also missing was the jet engine maintenance and service record.

 

It was learnt that no buyer would take possession of the jet engine without the maintenance and service documents.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

If there is a demand for obsolete F-5E parts, what about other more modern parts?

 

“Who will guard the guardians?"

No matter how perfect a system, men will beat it. Hence, check and balance is essential in any establishment.

 

:drinks:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Maybe someone should send those MIGs and Sukhois for service and never return them. :angry:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

If there is a demand for obsolete F-5E parts, what about other more modern parts?

 

“Who will guard the guardians?"

No matter how perfect a system, men will beat it. Hence, check and balance is essential in any establishment.

 

:drinks:

 

 

Modern parts? What about the armoury? Explosives?

 

There is definitely a demand for F5 parts - I bet you the end user is probably intended to be Iran.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

If there is a demand for obsolete F-5E parts, what about other more modern parts?

 

“Who will guard the guardians?"

No matter how perfect a system, men will beat it. Hence, check and balance is essential in any establishment.

 

:drinks:

 

KK, if it was just a part from the engine, then no issue lah. but for someone to plan the "kidnapping" of one whole engine, thats the thing that amuses me!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

People could steal firearms and even an entire jet engine from military base. It's a serious matter of security. What's next? Some armoured vehicles? Our pride submarine?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

interesting, very interesting... :blink:

 

anyone interested in buying a second hand S-61A-4 Nuri engine or a SA-316 Alouette III engine or better still, a second hand MiG-29 engine? they should have put an advert for it on mudah.my... :rofl:

 

this sort of things make Bolehland the laughing stock of the entire world...

Edited by Victor A.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

From The Star Online with the latest on this disgraceful incident

 

Missing RMAF jet engine discovered sold

BAGAN DATOH:The Royal Malaysia Air Force (RMAF) F-5E fighter jet engine missingsince 2007 was sold to an international company based in South America,said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

 

He said the company was believed to have hired an agent to bring the RM50mil engine out of the country.

 

"The ministry will take legal action at the international level to charge the company involved.

 

"Stern action will also be taken against RMAF involved for betrayingthe country," he told reporters after launching an environmentalprogramme here Saturday.

 

Ahmad Zahid confirmed that all documents pertaining to the sale of the engine had been obtained by the police.

 

"The international company was interested in buying the engine becausethe price was cheap, as it was a spare part categorised as faulty andwould be repaired," he said.

 

Local dailies reported Saturdaythat police had arrested four individuals, including RMAF officers, inconnection with the missing F-5E fighter jet engine. -- Bernama

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Related news to the incident:

 

Stolen jet engine ‘tip of the iceberg’

 

2009/12/19

 

Alang Bendahara

 

PUTRAJAYA: The armed forces has launched a full audit of its assets following the loss of a jet fighter engine from the Royal Malaysian Air Force air base in Sungai Besi here.

 

Armed forces chief Gen Tan Sri Azizan Ariffin said the stolen jet engine might just be the “tip of the iceberg”, as initial investigations showed that other equipment might have gone missing from as far back as 2007.

 

“We have tightened all our procedures, especially at the logistics department, and also introduced new security procedures to prevent attempts to steal and sell sensitive military equipment,” he told the New Straits Times after attending the national-level Maal Hijrah celebration at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre yesterday.

 

It is learnt that the armed forces had already taken disciplinary action against those responsible for the missing jet engine.

 

Sources said the engine, which was still operational, was transported in a military container from the air force’s Butterworth base to the Sungai Besi base for a routine maintenance service last year.

 

The jet engine was stored at the Sungai Besi warehouse while its service and maintenance record was kept in a safe in an office on the base.

 

Air force officers found the jet engine missing in January when they sent a private contractor to Subang to service the engine.

 

They also discovered that the service and maintenance record was missing.

 

Both the air force and police were investigating the possibility that the engine was sold on the black market to either illegal arms traders or countries

still flying the F-5E Tiger II and RF-5E Tigereye.

 

The stolen engine is the powerplant for one of the four F-5E Tiger II fighters and two RF-5E Tigereye reconnaissance jets still in active duty at the air force’s 12th Squadron (Scorpion) at the Butterworth air base.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

a whole engine stole??i cant even steal a DVD player from my workplace and they managed to steal a WHOLE engine??

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

What to expect when the top leaders also squander the wealth of the country? Their kakis, down to the lowest rung, would also do the same. The whole country is rotten to its core.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Zahid: Stolen jet engine sold to foreign company

UPDATED

 

BAGAN DATOH, Dec 19 – The Royal Malaysia Air Force (RMAF) F-5E fighter jet engine missing since 2007 was sold to an international company based in South America, said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

 

.......

 

Earlier, Zahid said the loss was detected in 2007, and internal investigations were undertaken by Mindef while police also probed the matter.

 

The investigations revealed RMAF’s logistics system was foolproof. However, the shady activity might have been carried out staff in the lower rungs in cahoots with outsiders,” he told reporters after launching the Penang and south Kedah territorial army company, here today.

 

More from;

http://my-1.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/47049?task=view

 

:rofl:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Modern parts? What about the armoury? Explosives?

 

There is definitely a demand for F5 parts - I bet you the end user is probably intended to be Iran.

 

Agree with you....

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Used J85 -5 was advertised for US$15,000

http://www.ecademy.com/module.php?mod=list&lid=30152

 

Upgraded engine for F-5E CFPW TT127 (11,500 lbs trust) cost US$2.1 million

http://74.125.153.132/search?q=cache:-bCoBbxRbjgJ:www.meatballs.terminator.org.uk/files/Saint%2520Fedski%2520Tiger%2520Upgrade%2520project.doc+J85-21A+price&cd=22&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=my

 

MinDef report RM50 million (US$15 million)? :sorry:

 

 

:drinks:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

F-20 Tigershark, a upgraded F-5E or replacement was reported to cost US$8.0 million. It is fascinating a used F-5E engine cost twice as much :sorry:

 

:drinks:

Edited by KK Lee

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

the way the engine gone missing, right up to the engine price in the international market doesn't seem to add up, does it? then the press statement from the Defense Minister has risen more question than answer. who was the Defense Minister during that period, 2007? anyone who answer correctly will win him/her-self a secondhand MiG-29 engine...... :lol:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

for sure..najib la..

 

for sure..najib la..

 

Pucat gigi dia...

 

 

NO COVER-UP, says Najib

Jet engine disappearance discovered when PM was still Defence Minister

Masami Mustaza

Monday, December 21st, 2009 13:07:00

Najib

 

PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said there was no attempt to "cover up" the disappearance of the RM50 million jet engine belonging to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).

 

He said the matter was uncovered when he was still Defence Minister.

 

"I decided that we should go to the police when the disappearance was discovered.

 

"Mindef (Ministry of Defence) has no intention of covering up; that's why we went to the police," he told reporters at a Press conference after attending a special meeting with the Malaysian Industry-Government Group For High Technology (Might) and launching the 2009 MIGHT report here this morning.

 

"Right now, we are co-operating with the police and we will wait for the full report to come out," he said.

 

It was reported that the General Electric J85-21A turbojet engine with afterburner, the powerplant of the single-seater F-5E Tiger II and and RF-5E Tigereye disappeared from the RMAF airbase in Sungai Besi during a routine maintenance service.

 

The engine, it was reported, may have been shipped off to a Middle East country which is the subject of US sanctions.

 

It was also reported that a brigadier-general and 40 other armed forces personnel were sacked late last year over their alleged involvement in the affair.

 

The brigadier-general, reportedly a department head, was allegedly one of four men identified by police as the 'main players.'

 

Their services were terminated by an internal inquiry and disciplinary committee following an audit of RMAF assets.

 

Although those sacked had lost their pensions and benefits, it was reported that the brigadier-general retained his pension and other retirement benefits.

 

On the issue of the pension, Najib said the matter is being looked into.

 

"The subject of his pension depends on Mindef and RMAF, and will also depend on the outcome of the investigation.

 

 

Now the police investigations report have been completed and with A-G Chamber hand now, but I wonder why the brigadier-general still get the pension benefit while the low rank not? for sure the main culprit (if it true) was the brigadier-general and the kulis get more pain...

 

 

STOLEN PARTS BACK HERE

RMAF possibly bought parts from jet engine stolen from Sungei Besi air base two years ago

MARHALIM ABAS

Monday, December 21st, 2009 11:42:00

RMAF

 

PETALING JAYA: The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) possibly ended up buying parts and components from a jet engine that went missing from its base two years ago and was subsequently sold abroad.

 

Local defence industry sources told The Malay Mail the General Electric J85-GE-21 engine had most likely been dismantled into smaller components when it was reportedly "sold" to a South American arms dealer.

 

These components, the sources added, could have been sold back to the RMAF by government-appointed panel companies.

 

"With up to six F5 jets still flying today, it is most likely that we could have purchased these components without knowing their origin," a source familiar with investigations into the case said.

 

The source said it would have been much easier to sell these components, such as fuel pump, case and vane, as the sellers only needed to produce certificates of worthiness, unlike a whole engine, which needed a full service documentation.

 

And it is almost impossible to trace such items to the original engine because the smaller components are interchangeable across the whole production line.

 

The source also said it was most likely the locals involved in stealing the engine would have been paid less than RM1 million for their trouble.

 

The source also claimed the engine would not have been worth more than RM10 million, even if it had been sold whole, a much lower figure than reported by local media.

 

This was because it was a used engine and it needed to be overhauled before it could be fitted to an aircraft.

 

On the RMAF personnel involved, the source said they would have knowledge of the parts most used by the 12th Squadron based at the Butterworth air base.

 

Such knowledge would have been useful when the arms dealer offered these components to local companies that supplied parts to the RMAF. The other parts may well have been sold to other F5 users in the region, which include Thailand and Indonesia, the source added.

 

Another industry source said it was most unlikely a foreign air force would purchase a whole engine without its full documentation, which would have to include approval documents from the US State Department.

 

The sale of US military items, including second-hand items like the J85 engine, needed approval from the US Congress, the source added.

 

Furthermore, the countries that still fly the Northrop F-5 Freedom Fighter and its variants around the world are staunch US allies, which would very unlikely buy a whole engine from an unverified source and without the State Department approval certificate.

 

The source said only Iran, which is one of the biggest users of the F5 interceptor aircraft and its unlicensed indigenously developed variant, would be the only buyer of a whole engine.

 

The US has maintained an arms embargo on Iran since the Islamic revolution in 1979. The source said the US, which has been notified of the engine theft, would have found out about any delivery to Iran and would have imposed sanctions on Malaysia for violating the arms embargo.

 

The sources said as far as they knew, the US has not placed any restrictions on the sale of items, military or dual-purpose, on Malaysia.

 

The sources believe the scheme was hatched when the Defence Ministry offered part of its F5 fleet for sale "between 2005 and 2006". Although the sale did not go through, it was believed that arms dealers who had bid for the planes had gained access to RMAF personnel.

 

The disappearance of the engine, one of two which powers the RMAF F5 fleet, was discovered in late 2007.

 

The engine was shipped from the Butterworth air base to Sungei Besi air base where it was supposed to be stored until it was sent for overhaul locally.

 

It was discovered missing when RMAF was informed by its service provider that it had not received the engine for a scheduled overhaul.

The Malay Mail was informed that initially RMAF personnel told investigators the engine was sent overseas for overhaul and it was quickly found out that the claim was just a ruse to cover for its disappearance.

Up to six F5 aircraft remain in the RMAF fleet, down from the 14 jets it used to operate a decade ago. Apart from two single-seat F-5E Tigers, RMAF also operates two RF-5E Tigereye reconnaissance aircrafts and two F-5F twin-seaters that are used for training. The Tigereyes are the only photo-reconnaissance combat aircraft in service with RMAF.

 

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, when contacted yesterday, said the ministry was still investigating the matter and could not give details as it involved legal aspects.

 

"We hope legal action can be sped up. So far, it is learnt that "

 

He said action had been taken against several senior officers as well as junior personnel but declined to say what action was taken.

 

Ahmad Zahid said there was a strong demand for components and spare parts for first generation supersonic fighter aircraft, especially among countries that were still using it.

 

Both sources from the Malay Mail.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

seriously, from my understanding, i don't get it how on earth they would have got the parts of the engine back. bogus parts don't come with an ARC (Authorised Release Certificate) which is a mandatory document needed before having the part installed in any aircraft for that matter of fact, moreover there must be higher regulations when it comes to military specification. either the media is just bullshitting their way or the so called "source" is just trying to become famous here. somehow it just smells very funny, this whole thingy! best part is GOD knows when this thing happened and the issue only surfaced now? typical la.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

During the weekend news it says 1 engine missing, now the latest news is another engine missing.

 

Hope by this weekend we don't read the newspaper that the submarine is missing. :help:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

malaysia boleh -always for the wrong reasons. Dont thinkthis lost/sold engine is just one incident as pretty suremanymilitary and air force parts have been "sold off" Nowonderthe RMAF fighter operational status is always below 60% or even more as was reported before the mIGs at onetime was done to below 50% operational - how to deter any foreign forces as all would have know its weaknesses.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

from today's news - seems all too soon that it was reported that another F5 engine was also missing n sold abroad making it 2 so far that is now known. And it wount be any surprises if more RMAF expensive and critical aircraft or related parts are missing and dispose of - and similarly same for the Navy and Army too. It's sad but unless Malaysia can even be graft-free, then only will the national security not be compromised. Further is the major issue of using a middle-man agency for its military arms procurement and also in transport and maintenance as this is the way for money leakages and compromise national security by making the specifications of its military pruchases be known to outside people.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...