US embassy cable - 03AMMAN8137

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 008137 
 
SIPDIS 
 
CPA ALSO FOR DARRELL TRENT/FRANK WILLIS 
TREASURY FOR ZARATE AND DEMOPULOS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2008 
TAGS: EAIR, EFIN, ETTC, IZ, JO 
SUBJECT: IRAQI AIRCRAFT IN JORDAN: FALCON 50 
 
REF: AMMAN 6222 
 
Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission, David Hale.  Reasons 1.5 (b) an 
d (d) 
 
Action request at Para 4. 
 
1.  (C)  Senior CPA Transportation Advisor Darrell Trent has 
urgently requested Embassy Amman's assistance in returning to 
Iraqi control a Falcon-50 executive jet (tail number HB-IES). 
 It has been sitting on the tarmac at Amman's Marka Airport 
since March 2003, collecting demurrage charges and slowly 
degrading from lack of use and maintenance.  According to the 
Jordanian Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the jet is 
registered in Liechtenstein to a Swiss company called 
Aviation Services, but was used by members of the former 
Iraqi regime to travel between Amman, Baghdad, and Europe. 
This suggests to the GOJ that the airplane is an asset of 
Iraq that should be seized under UNSCR 1483 and either 
returned to the control of the new government or sold with 
proceeds deposited in the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI). 
 
2.  (C)  However, although it suspects Iraqi government 
ownership, the Jordanian government has no substantive 
information.  To protect itself legally, the GOJ does not 
want to take action until instructed or requested by the 
Swiss company that is the registered owner of the airplane 
and/or by Liechtenstein as the place of the aircraft's 
registration (reftel).  To date, Jordan has received no such 
communication from the governments of Switzerland or 
Liechtenstein.  (We understand that Embassy Bern has 
discussed this issue extensively with Swiss and Liechtenstein 
authorities.) 
 
3.  (C)  In a recent development, Trent told us December 13 
that Iraqi Transportation Minister Boulos had secured the 
assistance of Amman-based members of the Iraqi Khawwam family 
to re-register the aircraft in Sierra Leone in the name of 
Iraqi Airways.  Armed with this new registration, the head of 
the Amman office of Iraqi Airways asked CAA's assistance in 
checking the aircraft for traces of radioactive materials -- 
given rumors that the plane was used to transport such 
material -- prior to release the airplane to Iraqi Airways. 
(Interestingly, the Iraqi Airways official apparently has 
obtained the keys to the airplane, probably from its former 
Jordanian pilots who were employed by Aviation Services.) 
 
4.  (C)  COMMENT AND ACTION REQUEST:  It is not clear what 
sort of title to the aircraft, if any, was presented in 
Sierra Leone, but, in any case it is unlikely that this new 
piece of paper will satisfy the legal requirements of the 
Jordanian government.  However, the CAA is ready to ask for 
the Jordanian Royal Scientific Society's technical help in 
checking for radiation traces.  It seems unfortunate that an 
asset (est. $7 million) of the former Iraqi regime whose 
condition and value is steadily deteriorating due to lack of 
use remains unutilized after nine months.  This is doubly 
true at a time when most commercial air service between 
Baghdad and the outside world has been suspended for security 
reasons.  The airplane could, as Trent prefers, be put to 
good use in transporting the growing stream of official Iraqi 
and CPA travelers, or it could be sold, with the proceeds 
added to the DFI.  Post is ready to work with the Jordanians 
to get this plane back to Iraq as quickly as possible and 
requests guidance. 
GNEHM