The celebration of the Day of the Romanian Army this year was accompanied by news (with many gaps) regarding the purchase of two H215M helicopters manufactured by the multinational company “Airbus”. The price quoted by Romanian journalists for the two aircraft, which the Romanian army is to use against enemy surface ships, will be 150 million euros (excluding VAT).

To understand why we used the word “gaps” (there are quite a few), we turned our attention to the documents available in the Romanian archives about the purchase in early 1978 of four French SA-365 C “Dauphin 2”. helicopters to support the 50th Air Transport Flotilla. From them, first of all, we can find out the general structure of the final price in the case of the purchase of foreign aircraft by Romania, namely:

– “The cost of importing 4 SA-365 C Dauphin 2 helicopters, additional equipment, radio communication and navigation equipment, spare parts and equipment, costs of technical assistance, training, modifications, fuel, lubricants, maintenance and service materials, transport, various [situaţii] unforeseen events, insurance, tracking the manufacture and acceptance of helicopters”;

– the amount of interest corresponding to the loan concluded abroad by the authorities of Bucharest: 5,676,486 French francs;

– “Costs in lei related to the purchase of helicopters”;

– terms of payment by the Romanian side of the final prices for helicopters and equipment proposed by the French company;

– the set-off terms agreed by the two parties that signed the contract: “As compensation for the general effort in foreign currency for the acquisition of SA-365 C Dauphin 2 helicopters, the company AÉROSPATIALE has agreed to send to the Romanian side an order in the amount of 5,000,000 French francs, consisting of aeronautical products , produced on the basis of the Alouette III and SA-330 PUMA license contracts, as well as other possible contracts concluded with the company AÉROSPATIALE”.

The documents we are making available to the public reveal for the first time the fact that, although the Bucharest authorities invited three proposals from abroad (France, the Federal Republic of Germany and the United States of America), the winner has already been determined. Some modern aeronautical production facilities were operating in Brasov – from 1971 for the production of 100 SA-316 B “Alouette” helicopters, respectively from 1975 for the production, also under French license, of 50 SA-330 “Puma” helicopters – and the Romanian authorities could use them to pay most of the interest on a loan that was to be taken out in early 1978 for the purchase of helicopters that Nicolae Ceausescu was to use during his visits to Romania. Therefore, 5,676,486 French francs (total interest) can be compared to the total value of the orders that the French company has committed to fulfill in Romania during the contract period: 5,000,000 French francs (about $412,820.10).

On February 16, 1978, the Bucharest authorities agreed to pay a total of 39,313,196 French francs (approximately $3,245,855.54) over the period 1978-1984 for four SA-365 C “Dauphin 2” helicopters.

Initially, the President of Romania decided in October 1976 that Gheorghe Opria should start creating “a group of specialists to make proposals for improving the helicopter [IAR-316 B] and equipping it with two engines, in the sense that was discussed [la expoziţia de tehnică militară de la Otopeni, desfăşurată la 15 octombrie 1976]”. Therefore, the Romanian engineers and workers had to work on the instructions of a politician who had a rudimentary knowledge of aviation, and unfortunately they failed in this project, while the French engineers were well aware of the fact that the helicopter model in question was morally worn out and could not develop in the sense that Nicolae Ceausescu indicated.

The Romanian leader insisted on his mistake on May 27, 1977, when he visited another exhibition of military equipment and found that “The Ministry of Mechanical Engineering, with the support of the Ministry of National Defense, is intensifying research and production for the realization of a small helicopter with two engines (emphasis added)”. The corresponding decision was brought to the attention of 11 high-ranking persons: Prime Minister Manea Menescu, Ion Ionice (former Minister of National Defense), Ion Stenescu (former Minister of the Interior), Mihai Marinescu, Ioan Ursa, Colonel General Ion Koman (Minister) . of National Defense), Teodor Koman (Minister of Internal Affairs), Ioan Avram, Neculai Agachi and Mihail Florescu. They all signed the document drawn up by Stefan Birlea and Marin Enecke on June 16, 1977.

Source: Archive “Vasluyul Communist” (www.facebook.com/vaslui607080). The image was restored and repainted as part of the “Communist Vaslui” project.

Two SA-365 C “Dauphin” helicopters in the “Tourist” variant were delivered on June 11, 1979 and had registration numbers YR-DFA and YR-DFB. For the transfer of the “VIP” version (YR-DFC; YR-DFD) in France on October 5, 1979, a team was formed in the Department of Civil Aviation, consisting of Major General Christian Gheorghe (head of the delegation). ), Engineer-Colonel Dumitru Negru and Mircea Bukur (for checking cameras and engines), Engineer-Captain Nikolae Makovei (for radio communication and radar equipment), Colonels Mihai Fitzal and Tudor Kondruz (instructor pilots) and Engineer-Captain Vasile Ionice (for electrical installations). , on-board devices, oxygen and special equipment). Romanian pilots made up mixed crews with French colleagues and took off on January 31, 1980 from France to Bucharest – along the route Marignan (the place where the French aircraft factory was located) – Genoa – Venice – Zagreb (stop for refueling) – Belgrade – Timisoara – Brasov – Bucharest (Heating).

All SA-365 C “Dauphin 2” helicopters, which were in service with the 50th Air Transport Flotilla, were returned in the spring of 1986 to the French company, when they went for overhaul. The authorities of Bucharest decided to return all the devices (their value is 2 million French francs) and pay the difference in money in order to receive four new SA-365 N “Dauphin” helicopters. They arrived in two batches at the Otopeni base of the 50th AVT flotilla, two delivered at the same time. Test flights and reception of the first devices took place on February 3, 1986 at the plant in Marignan.

All SA-365 C “Dauphin 2” helicopters used in Romania between 1979 and 1986 were re-registered and continued to fly in France and the Federal Republic of Germany: F-WTMH (ex YR-DFA), F-OBNY ( YR -DFB ), D-HHII (YR-DFC) and D-HAAK (YR-DFD).

Documents drawn up in Bucharest in January and February 1978 for the purchase of four SA-365 C “Dauphin 2” helicopters for the 50th Air Transport Flotilla.

[Consemnare manu, cu cerneală albastră:] 560/15.2.1978

Central Committee of the Office of the PCR

No. 647 15 II 1978

Archive of the Executive Political Committee of the Central Committee of the PKR

No. 280 / 2 III 1978

[Rezoluţia lui Nicolae Ceauşescu:]

Agree

ss. Nicolae Ceausescu

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