Just bizarre. Can't they nuke Noga or something?Noga Upsets Russia again. Russian Fighters May not Reach Air Salon
Sukhoy marked airplanes, it is possible, will not participate in the lead air salon of the year which opens on 15 June at the Le Bourget airfield outside Paris. The general director of the Sukhoy Aviation Military Industrial Complex (AVPK), Mikhail Pogosyan, announced yesterday that the question of sending “full scale examples” (that is, real airplanes) to France has not yet been resolved. They are afraid at Sukhoy that the equipment may be seized in a law suit by the scandalously well-known Swiss firm, Noga. Meanwhile, the other domestic developer of fighters - the Russian Airplane Building Corporation (RSK) MiG firmly intends to fly to Paris "on its own wings."
The Noga firm has been chasing after Russian property already for exactly 10 years. Because of its suits, the foreign accounts of the Bank of Russia and Vneshehkonombank have been seized, and also the “Sedov” training sailing ship. Since 2001, Noga has switched over to airplanes and has been able in fact to chase Russian equipment from prestigious European aviation undertakings. This year our authorities vowed to put an end to Noga’s “aerial blockade,” but the Sukhoy management, apparently, is not convinced in the end that this promise will be carried out.
The history of Noga’s claims against Russia trace its roots to 1991 - 1992 when the firm’s owner, Nessim Gaon, concluded contracts with Russian authorities for the delivery of foodstuffs in exchange for oil. Gaon maintains that in accordance with these contracts Russia still owes him a certain sum, the size of which serves as the topic of debates. According to Gaon, he has available the official letters of Russian officials acknowledging a debt of 300 million dollars. Owing to the run up of fines and interest, now the Swiss businessman estimates this debt at approximately one billion dollars. A Stockholm arbitration of Gaon’s suits recognized an indebtedness of 63 million dollars for Russia. Starting from 1993, that very same arbitration from time to time renders decrees which allow the Noga firm to seize Russian assets in Western Europe.
In June 2001, a similar decree in relation to Russian airplanes being exhibited at the Le Bourget air salon appeared. On 22 June of that year, when police officers with this decision appeared at the gates of the Le Bourget airfield, two airplanes (the Su-30MK, which was being presented by AVPK Sukhoy, and the MiG-AT which belongs to RSK MiG) made an emergency flight to Russia, escaping right from under Gaon's nose. Because of the fears that similar events will be repeated, AVPK Sukhoy and RSK MiG did not send their airplanes to 2002 international air salons in Berlin and Farnborough (Great Britain), and also to several less important airshows in Western Europe.
In July 2002, Russia’s minister of Industry and Science, Il’ya Klebanov, announced to journalists that Farnborough 2002 is the last air salon in which Russia will not exhibit its aircraft because of the problems with Noga. He also promised “decisive action” in the resolution of this conflict. True, neither Mr. Klebanov nor other officials ever have explained in detail on which basis in principle they intend to be reconciled with the Swiss businessman.
In December 2002, a French court rejected a series of Gaon’s suits against Rosaviakosmos, the Le Bourget airport administration and some other organizations and private individuals who the Swiss consider guilty of the fact that the seizure of the Su and MiG a year earlier went wrong. Noga has appealed this decision, which will be examined today. Mikhail Pogosyan said yesterday AVPK Sukhoy will make its decision depending on the results of this new trial: to send the airplanes to Le Bourget-2003 or not. If Sukhoy nevertheless decides to fly, then the upgraded Su-27SM fighter will be the center point of its exposition.
The chief of the RSK MiG public relations department, Sergey Timofeev, said to a “Vremya Novostey” correspondent yesterday that MiG is no longer afraid of Noga. The corporation will present the MiG-AT, which was able to retreat so successfully from France 2 years ago, and also the “export” upgrade of the MiG-29MRCA fighter [typical press error- this is the MiG-29M2]. In all in the list of the salon’s participants this year are counted 47 Russian aviation and space industry enterprises.
In truth, Noga has no legal claim to MiG or Sukhoi's fighters because they're not Russian government property- they belong to the design bureaus, who do not owe Noga any money.
