AIR FOYLE ACQUIRES AN124 AT AUCTION

AIR FOYLE ACQUIRES AN124 AT AUCTION

   Air Foyle was the successful bidder for an AN124 aircraft which has been detained by Dutch legal authorities at Maastricht Airport since August 1998.

   The successful bid was $6 million, plus auctioneer's commission and parking fees incurred since the plane arrived at Maastricht Airport. Two $15-million bids were rules out as non-compliant by the auctioneer.

   Air Foyle said the bid price took into account a substantial reduction in value due to the absence of technical records. The airline said it will work with Ukrainian and Russian regulatory authorities to deal with the missing documentation, which is apparently held by a Russian company.

   The airline will contract with Antonov Design Bureau for a technical team to visit Maastricht in order to work with Dutch aviation authorities to enable the aircraft to depart the airport within 60 days as required under the auction conditions. The plane is expected to be flown to Antonov's major maintenance facilities in Kiev where it will be stripped down and evaluated.

   Air Foyle said it may take three months or more before the AN124 is able to join the commercial fleet of Antonov Airlines.