The police investigative team and the Ministry of Defense's special investigations unit, now examining the apparent case of fraud in the procurement of five Panther helicopters for Israel's Navy, may also examine two other of plane and helicopter procurements in which businessman Uri Idelsberg and his company Ideltech, were also involved. The information was given to "Globes" today by a source close to the investigation. Ideltech is the Israel representative of American-Eurocopter, manufacturer of the Panther helicopter.
Ideltech served as middleman in the procurement deals, negotiating between manufacturer Eurocopter of French group Aerospatiale, and the Israel Ministry of Defense procurement delegation, stationed in New York. Idelsberg and Ideltech were also involved in the recently concluded purchase of Trinidad airplanes by the Israel Air Force, which bought 25 planes.
The Trinidad is a one engine, five seat plane. The price of each plane, manufactured by a division of Eurocopter, is $200,000. The new transport planes were put into use early this year, after which serious operating malfunctions were discovered in the planes' engines, requiring overall inspection.
In addition, it has now come to light that Ideltech was involved in the acquisition of two Dolphin Navy helicopters, until recently operated by the Air Force for the Navy. The helicopters were sold, via a middleman, to American-Eurocopter as part of the Panther purchase. Two months ago, one of the helicopters crashed.