The Department of State Interests Protection of the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Armenia has examined the results of the examination conducted by the RA Civil Aviation Committee, received from the RA Accounts Chamber. The necessary  documents were also requested from the Civil Aviation Committee,  State Revenue Committee, Police, Aviation Training Center CJSC, and  the RA Ministry of Justice, information was also obtained from the electronic system of the State Register of Legal Entities of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia. According to the results of the research, it became known that during  2007-2018, 27 students were admitted for studying at Aviation  Training Center on free-of-charge basis, 18 of whom graduated from  the school with the qualifications of a pilot. Training expenses  amounted to 888 million 778 thousand drams, which were allocated by  the General Department of Civil Aviation (now the Civil Aviation  Committee). Of this amount, 839 million 964 thousand drams were spent  on flight practice.  For the training practice of future pilots in  2013-2018, an agreement was concluded between Aviation Training  Center CJSC and an LLC, according to which LLC for flying time in the  amount of 2434 hours and 50 minutes and the rental of the Diamond DA  40 aircraft was paid 592 million drams.  In addition, the internal  audit in the Committee on February 14,2016 recorded that the  procurement process was not organized for conducting educational  practice, and the contract of June 7, 2013 with the specified LLC was  continued without any justification.

 

Payment for the flight time by the General Department of Civil  Aviation was carried out "without any justification" in the amount  exceeding the contract amount - per hour in the amount of 38 thousand  600 drams. In total, over  16 million drams were paid for 414 hours. The aircraft being leased was to be produced in  2007, while the application submitted states that the aircraft was  produced in 2006. Despite this, the evaluation commission of  "Aviation Training Center" CJSC declared the LLC as the winner of the  tender on January 13, 2016 and signed a lease agreement in the amount  of 184 million 168 thousand drams.

 

Meanwhile, it turned out that the cost of acquiring the aircraft,  according to the customs declaration, was 86 million 217 thousand  drams. Thus, the Civil Aviation Committee spent on rent of a training  plane the amount seven-fold exceeding the cost of the aircraft  itself. According to the data of the SRC, LLC, from which the plane was leased, from 2013 to 2018 did not have a single registered, paid employee, except for the director. And according to information from the Police and the Ministry of Justice, this same director, as well as members of another LLC of the aforementioned participating company, was in kinship with the former responsible official of the General Directorate of Civil Aviation. Thus, the unreasonable expenses for the rental of the aircraft in the amount of 592 million drams were made, that had serious consequences for the State.

 

On the basis of the data obtained, in the Department of State Interests Protection of the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Armenia  a criminal case  has been initiated on the grounds of p. 2, Article 214  and p.  2, Article 308  of the RA  Criminal Code.

 

The preliminary investigation was entrusted to the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia.

 

Note: Every person suspected in or charged with a criminal offense shall be presumed innocent unless proved guilty in the manner prescribed by the RA Criminal Procedure Code and unless the verdict comes into legal force.