Police have stated that they are in the midst of selling the 9-seater 5XPEF/P180 PIAGO AVANTI, which they purchased for shs28 billion in 2019.
On Friday, police gave journalists a guided tour of the aircraft at the Entebbe police wing.
Fred Enanga, a police spokesperson, stated that despite the aircraft’s ability to remain flying for up to 8 hours while providing aerial support, it has yet to produce a beneficial consequence since acquisition.
“Since its acquisition, it has only flown 117 hours because it is not built for non-tarmacked runways, requires costly mandatory inspections, insurance, and AMO, and yields no benefits. Furthermore, the aeroplane parts are prohibitively expensive given the nature and grade of luxury,” Enanga stated.
He explained that after realising this, the situation was reported to the Internal Affairs minister, who had no objections to the disposal of the unserviceable aircraft and the purchase of a new compatible helicopter.
He stated that on October 19, 2022, a board of survey inspected the aircraft and valued it at $4.2 million, which includes depreciated replacement cost valuation, technical condition, based valuation, Blue book values, current marketing running prices, a minimum of $100, 681.79 to replace expired parts, and the fact that it is the only aircraft on the African continent.
“As a result, the replacement of the fixed-wing aircraft will give the Police Airwing another operational and effective crime-fighting equipment. So far, numerous types of aircraft have been assessed with manufacturers, taking into account the aircraft’s prospective weights and operations by the Uganda Police.
Police, however, disputed claims that the aircraft had already been disposed of and remained silent.
Enanga explained that the aircraft disposal method is consistent with the PPDA.
“It is considered option of the police force that the Paggio Avanti 11 Evo is disposed of and a new generation compatible aircraft acquired through the trade-in procurement sourcing method, ans in line with the PPDA laws and regulations.”