VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHRL #1466/01 3040629
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 300629Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2488
INFO RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 0652
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 0570
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 9352
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME PRIORITY 1503
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY

S E C R E T BERLIN 001466 
 
SIPDIS 
EUR/CE FOR HODGES AND SCHROEDER 
T/PM/DDTC FOR MALONEY, TRIMBLE AND ZERDEN 
DOD FOR DEFENSE SECURITY COOPERATION AGENCY 
DSCA FOR MAJ. ORENCHICK 
DOD FOR DEFENSE CONTRACTING COMMAND 
CENTCOM FOR COL. KULVAS 
EUCOM / TRANSCOM FOR LNO SIERS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/31/2033 
TAGS: KOMC ECCT AF GM
SUBJECT: ATTEMPTED EXPORT OF GERMAN-ORIGIN HELICOPTERS TO 
AFGHANISTAN 
 
Classified By: A\DCM Robert A. Pollard, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶1.  (U) This is an urgent action request.  See comment and 
action requests in paragraphs 11 and 12. 
 
¶2.  (S) Summary:  Embassy Berlin has become aware that a U.S. 
firm, Presidential Airways, appears to have moved 
German-origin helicopters to Turkey, with the intent of 
moving them NLT 30 Oct to Afghanistan, in likely violation of 
German export law.  Presidential Airways is moving these 
helicopters to Afghanistan for the stated purpose of 
providing contracted-for logistical services for U.S. forces 
in Afghanistan.  The original export control case is being 
reviewed at very senior levels of the GOG.  If German 
authorities determine that Presidential Airways has violated 
German export control law, we expect negative consequences 
for U.S. - German relations.  A possible solution to this is 
for the helicopters to remain in Turkey, pending the GOG's 
final decision on this matter. 
 
BACKGROUND 
 
¶3.  (C)  In approximately mid-September 2008, the 
vice-president of Presidential Airways, Mr. Tim Childrey, 
contacted Embassy Berlin's Office of Defense Cooperation 
(ODC) requesting any assistance the ODC or Embassy Berlin 
could provide to secure a German Export License for three SA 
330 J PUMA helicopters his company recently purchased from 
Eurocopter Deutschland.  Presidential Airways purchased these 
helicopters for the stated purpose of executing its contract 
with the U.S. Department of Defense to provide logistical air 
services to U.S. forces in Afghanistan. 
 
¶4.  (C)   ODC Germany worked with the Economics/Global 
Affairs section of Embassy Berlin and determined that the 
export license application was being discussed at senior 
levels of the German Foreign Ministry, and would likely not 
be acted upon until the next scheduled meeting of the German 
federal security council under direction of the Chancellor's 
Office.  Presidential Airways is owned by the Prince Group, 
Inc. which also owns the Blackwater security company. 
 
¶5.  (C)  Efforts by Prince Group personnel and lobbyists from 
Eurocopter Deutschland did not succeed in forcing an early 
decision.  The Puma issue was slated for discussion at the 
November federal security council meeting.  Presidential 
Airways has expressed concerns about what they viewed as the 
long time it was taking to obtain BAFA export permission.  In 
reaction, Presidential Airways notified BAFA on 3 Oct 2008 
that it had changed its plans and now intended to move the 
helicopters to the United States and/or the United Kingdom. 
In Presidential's view, this did not require an export 
license from BAFA. 
 
¶6. (C) On 10 Oct 2008, Eurocopter Deutschland received a 
letter from the German Economics Ministry stating they had 
information that these helicopters were enroute to the 
Netherlands.  Significantly, this letter warned that if these 
helicopters arrived in Afghanistan, this would constitute a 
violation of German law.   Sometime between 10 and 27 
October, these helicopters were flown from Germany, possibly 
to the Netherlands, then on to the UK, and finally to Turkey. 
 
 
¶7. (C) On 27 Oct 2008, the Senior Legal Counsel for 
Eurocopter Deutschland, Dr. Kraemer forwarded the 
above-described letter from the German Econ Ministry to Mr. 
Childrey and Mr. Schmitz, as well as other German officials. 
Kraemer advised Presidential Airways it was taking the Pumas 
to the US and/or the UK, not Afghanistan; and reminded all of 
the possible legal consequences.   Also on 27 OCT 08, ODC 
Germany received a copy of the above letters via e-mail from 
a member of the German Chancellor's Office. 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  On 28 OCT 2008, ODC Germany contacted Mr. Childrey 
of Presidential Airways and inquired about the case. 
Presidential Airways informed ODC that the helicopters were 
in Turkey with a stated final destination of Afghanistan. 
 
 
Childrey noted that his company could no longer afford to 
wait on the German decision, and had decided to take the 
helicopters to the UK, which he asserted required no German 
export license.  (Note:  this appears to be an unsupported 
legal conclusion.  End note.)   Once the helicopters reached 
the UK, Childrey believed U.S. law and procedures would 
apply.  He claimed to have informed the U.S. State Department 
of his plan to fly the helicopters to Afghanistan (NFI).  ODC 
Germany expressed grave concern for the way in which 
Presidential had handled this case, but legal counsel for 
Presidential stated that he was following U.S. law and did 
not understand why the Germans were upset. 
 
¶9.   (S)  We have conflicting information on the likely 
disposition of this matter by Germany's Federal Security 
Council,  currently scheduled for discussion on November 5th. 
  However, it appears clear from all sources that any 
movement of the helicopters without permission from Federal 
Security Council will constitute a violation of German law. 
 
¶10.  (S)  At no time did Embassy Berlin advise Presidential 
Airways to remove the Pumas from Germany without proper 
export permission or otherwise to circumvent the German 
export control process or German law.  Presidential 
represented in its e-mails to U.S. Office of Defense 
Cooperation officials in Germany that it kept the U.S. State 
Department updated" of its plans to remove the helicopters 
and of its determination that the lack of response from the 
Germans amounted to their tacit consent.  Embassy Berlin is 
unaware of any such communication. 
 
¶11.  (S)  COMMENT:  If Presidential Airways and the Prince 
Group have played a role in exporting German-origin 
helicopters to Afghanistan without the necessary German 
export permission, this could have wider effects on bilateral 
cooperation.  Because the helicopters would be used to 
support U.S. forces (even though in a contractual 
relationship), it would be very difficult to entirely 
dissociate the USG from the matter.  It would complicate 
relationships with German export control officials -- on whom 
we depend for cooperation on Iran-related issues and other 
key proliferation concerns.  The issue could become public in 
Germany and would take on proportions well beyond the 
significance of a few helicopters, given the widespread 
public skepticism about Germany's engagement in Afghanistan 
and the presence of opportunistic opposition political forces 
(especially the Greens and The Left).  This could complicate 
relationships with those senior officials in the Chancellery 
and Foreign Office with whom we currently have an excellent 
working relationship, but who would have to lead the damage 
control. END COMMENT 
 
¶12.  (S) Action Request:  We are unaware of which, if in fact 
any, State Department Office Presidential or Prince Group 
approached on this matter.  We ask the Department and other 
relevant USG agencies to examine this matter immediately and 
to encourage Presidential Airways not to move these 
helicopters from their current location in Turkey. 
Timken Jr