newstodate.aero

Oct 03, 2019 (newstodate): To get its SAAB 340 cargo aircraft airborne again, the Latvian cargo and passenger charter and ACMI operator RAF-Avia bought a replacement engine from the Polish company SkyTaxi.
   Or so they thought: in the end, the engine was delivered basically as a combustion unit without the accessories needed to constitute a complete power unit.
   -SkyTaxi delivered an engine in serviceable state as per contract. Accessories, not subject to contract, were not included in transactions terms, says SkyTaxi in a letter distributed widely to business partners and intended to warn against doing business with the Latvian company.  
   -Those terms were agreed by both parties, and the engine was accepted at the pickup location accordingly. We cannot be held responsible for RAF-Avia's inability to understand the contract.
   RAF-Avia sees things rather differently.
   -What we signed up and paid for was a serviceable engine to be mounted on the wings of the SAAB 340 enabling it to fly. And this was not what we got, says Jelena Rigere, RAF-Avia Commercial Director.
    -SkyTaxi next offered us to sell the missing accessories at further costs, meaning that we would have to pay twice for the same service. We have of course neglected this, and have sourced the missing parts elsewhere, says Ms Rigere.
   According to SkyTaxi's letter, the company is considering taking RAF-Avia to the court for "negative PR-work", but according to Mr Rigere the case is over for their part.
   RAF-Avia's single SAAB 340 freighter has long been grounded due to lack of a power plant that is a scarce commodity in the market.
   Expectations, or rather hopes, are that the aircraft will now be in the air by the end of October 2019.