When Keith arrived at the entrance of "Precision Aviation Services," it was already 10:30 a.m. Unlike last time, he came alone. For confidentiality reasons, he hadn’t informed Allen Baker beforehand, opting instead to arrange a time directly with Crawford by phone.


    The two met in the modest manager''s office on the hangar’s second floor. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Crawford placed two black folders on the coffee table.


    Keith spent over three hours skimming through the thick files, oblivious to the fact that lunchtime had passed.


    The files were for two Mi-17 helicopters, containing certificates of origin, copies of transfer contracts, and flight and maintenance records.


    These helicopters were actually Soviet Mi-8MTs, manufactured by Kazan Helicopter Plant and rolled out in 1983 and 1984. They were remnants of Soviet equipment left in Afghanistan. When the Soviet Union withdrew in 1988 and the puppet regime they had supported fell in 1992, the military assets of the Afghan Republic were divided and sold by warlords. During that time, these two helicopters were sold to the Pakistani government, who then sold them to Precision Aviation Services in 2001.


    The documentation was incomplete, especially the part covering Afghanistan, which was almost entirely blank, and the information provided by Pakistan was very general. However, ''Precision Aviation Services'' records were thorough, with each flight meticulously documented. It was now clear that both helicopters had logged over 3,000 flight hours, with one reaching 3,800 hours. However, Precision Aviation’s maintenance was meticulous, recording every maintenance job and replaced part. Both helicopters had recently undergone major overhauls: one in the middle of last year and the other at the last year-end.


    At 2:00 p.m., Keith rubbed his numb backside and stood up. Glancing at his watch, he sheepishly said to Crawford, "Sorry, I lost track of time."


    "It’s alright. If you could decide quickly, that would help me," Crawford replied with a smile, showing no signs of annoyance. "The helicopters are in the hangar. Would you like to take a look?"Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    "No, thanks," Keith replied after a moment’s thought. "This kind of inspection is better handled by a third party."


    "Good point," Crawford nodded in agreement.


    Keith stood up and said, "Let’s leave it here for today. I need to discuss this with my partners at the company."


    "By the way," as he reached the office door, something occurred to him, and he turned back. "I remember your company also offers personnel training, right?"


    "Yes."


    "Could you help me find a team of mechanics? Also, I’d like you to recommend two crews familiar with Mi-17 operations."


    Crawford paused momentarily, then smiled and replied, "Of course, we have several excellent people who would definitely meet your requirements."


    "Great, then. Please organize their resumes and fax them to me. I’ll arrange separate meetings after reviewing them."


    "No problem."


    Crawford personally escorted him to the company entrance, and the two shook hands by the roadside to say goodbye.


    While Keith was on his flight back to Durban, Deng Shiyang was waiting for a connecting flight at Oliver Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg. He entered the Lufthansa lounge, chose an inconspicuous corner seat, and took out a recently purchased copy of the African Times.


    The previous night, Harobi had provided him with an email address, the contact for the arms brokerage firm acting as the intermediary for the Zimbabwean government and Pindad. He asked Deng to contact the firm to see if they could add 100 assault rifles to the order.


    This is one of the more common forms of manipulation in the international arms market. Particularly for brokers unable to gain interest from arms manufacturers due to low profits or lack of legitimate authorization, their strategy is to place orders with other legitimate arms dealers. They include the requested weapons and ammunition within a larger order, secure export permits, and then deliver the goods to the buyer through their own channels. As long as the transaction doesn’t threaten national security or interests, most arms-exporting governments tacitly ignore the authenticity of the "end-user certificates." Therefore, as long as the middlemen manage it properly, this practice of blending orders has long been a common tactic in the trade.


    Deng had sent an email to that address the previous evening, requesting 100 SS1-V2 short-barreled assault rifles with folding stocks and 2,000 thirty-round magazines. He added a note specifying that each rifle should have a STANAG 2324 NATO standard rail on top and include a maintenance kit.


    The response arrived this morning, inviting him to Frankfurt to discuss the transaction details. So, he immediately booked a flight to Frankfurt and took a South African Airways flight to Johannesburg around noon.


    ---


    Annotations:


    - SS1 Assault Rifle: An Indonesian-made version of the FNC rifle, produced under license by Pindad.