VZCZCXRO1191
OO RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHNEH RUEHPW
DE RUEHNE #1251/01 1671349
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 161349Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7030
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 3525
RHMCSUU/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RUEIDN/DNI WASHINGTON DC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 8201

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 001251 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR PM/ISO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL MARR KMGT OTRA EAIR IN
SUBJECT: AVIATION FEE IMPASSE FORCES EMBASSY TO CANCEL 
SUPPORT FLIGHT, SEEK INTERIM SOLUTION 
 
REF: A. NEW DELHI 813 
     ¶B. 2007 STATE 105799 
     ¶C. NEW DELHI 473 
 
¶1. (U) This is an action request; please see paragraphs 6 and 
¶7. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Post appreciates the Department's guidance to date 
(ref A and previous) on the issue of aviation-related fees 
for official U.S. Government aircraft and understands that an 
interagency process is currently underway to provide further 
guidance on a global policy.  However, the issue has taken on 
increased urgency from an operational standpoint, resulting 
in the forced cancellation of an Embassy support flight June 
¶14.  Failure to find a interim solution that guarantees 
reliable access by U.S. Government aircraft threatens further 
disruption to Embassy operations and damage to important 
relationships leading into several high-level visits 
beginning the week of June 22. 
 
Embassy Support Flight Cancellation 
- - - 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Embassy received an email June 9 from Delhi 
International Airport Limited (DIAL), the private entity 
running commercial operations at Indira Gandhi International 
airport (IGI), indicating that it would no longer extend 
credit for fees levied on U.S. Government state aircraft. 
The message indicated that absent the settlement of 
outstanding dues, the U.S. Air Force could only operate from 
IGI Airport "on (a) cash and carry basis with immediate 
effect."  This put at risk an Embassy support flight due to 
arrive June 14.  Following repeated inquiries to Ministry of 
External Affairs (MEA) Joint Secretary for the Americas 
Gaitri Kumar and her staff June 9-12, Kumar agreed on June 12 
to ask DIAL to extend credit for the June 14 flight. 
Reinforcing this conclusion, one member of Kumar's staff 
assured POLoff June 12 that the flight would not be impeded, 
but said he could not provide a written guarantee.  DIAL 
separately confirmed to ECONoff June 12 that it would 
continue to permit flights to land if instructed to do so by 
MEA, as had been the ad hoc arrangement for some time. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Nevertheless, on June 13 DIAL said it would extend 
credit for the June 14 flight, but asked the Defense Attache 
to provide a letter stating that the Embassy would accept 
responsibility for all landing fees for that particular 
flight.  The Defense Attache replied that he was not 
authorized to provide such a letter.  Kumar then told the 
A/DCM the afternoon of June 13 that the only DIAL official 
authorized to reinstate credit for the flight was not 
available on a Saturday, adding that in any case MEA viewed 
the issue between the Embassy and DIAL as a private 
commercial matter and that MEA was not obliged to intervene. 
(Comment: It is not clear whether Kumar's characterization of 
the issue as a commercial matter was pursuant to a deliberate 
new MEA policy or was merely a deflection from her inability 
to fix the problem.  End Comment.)  Absent effective MEA 
intervention with DIAL or the authorization to pay any fees, 
the Embassy recommended the cancellation of the June 14 
support flight on June 13 at approximately 6 pm. 
 
¶5. (SBU) The Airports Authority of India and 
privately-operated Indian airports claim that the U.S. 
Government owes approximately $171,378 in unpaid fees.  Of 
this total, Embassy New Delhi DAO calculates that DIAL is 
owed only $64,606 in legitimate fees, or an average of about 
$1,219 per flight.  The Embassy expects the arrival of a USG 
aircraft carrying high-level visitors the week of June 22, 
with further visits planned for July. 
 
Action Request and Proposed Interim Solutions 
- - - 
 
¶6. (SBU) ACTION REQUEST:  Taking into consideration the 
uncertainty of the current ad hoc arrangements as illustrated 
by the June 14 flight cancellation and the volume of 
important U.S. Government business that depends on reliable 
 
NEW DELHI 00001251  002 OF 002 
 
 
access by USG state aircraft, the Embassy no longer feels 
that the status quo is sustainable.  Post requests that the 
Department and Interagency revisit this issue with renewed 
urgency to explore reliable interim arrangements prior to 
high-level visits due later this month and next month.  Post 
recommends the following way forward (parts originally 
proposed ref A) to ensure USG flights are not disrupted in 
the short term while a more comprehensive solution is sought: 
 
¶A.  Post requests permission to pay -- before high-level 
visits expected the week of June 22 -- outstanding bills 
which in our view are payable under ref B's guidance for 
landing and commercial side parking fees for DIAL and other 
commercial entities in India as necessary to facilitate USG 
business (Mumbai International Airport Ltd, New Bangalore 
Airport, New Hyderabad Airport, and Cochin Airport).  An MEA 
contact repeated June 12 his off-the-record suggestion that 
payment of the past dues to DIAL would be a signal of our 
intention to resolve the longer-term issue and prevent 
further action by the GOI or any other commercial provider 
throughout India. 
 
¶B.  Post recommends a team of policy and legal experts from 
Washington request to meet with Indian authorities on billing 
of aviation fees at the earliest opportunity to address the 
differences under ref B policy.  From the GOI perspective, 
concrete progress on a process to resolve the larger issue 
could help to sustain the viability of an interim solution. 
 
¶C.  Post continues to oppose the new Indian policy (ref C) 
that only exempts USG flights from payment if "invited." 
However, Post increasingly views seeking invitations as less 
onerous than the unpredictable disruption of important USG 
business, and requests Department authorization to seek 
invitations for VIP visitors in limited circumstances. 
(Note:  MEA has made clear that it now has a formal policy 
for the first time and intends to apply it scrupulously; MEA 
does not therefore regard previous visits that may or may not 
have received formal invitations prior to the establishment 
of its current policy as precedent-setting.  Furthermore, the 
GOI rarely extends formal invitations except to Heads of 
State and, occassionally, to the Secretary of State.  For 
instance, former Secretary Rice did not receive a formal 
invitation -- for MEA's purposes -- for her two visits in the 
fall of 2008.  End Note.) 
 
¶D.  DIAL's "cash and carry" option suggests that it would 
accept payment for individual flights, leaving the 
outstanding fees to be addressed separately.  This would seem 
to permit an approach proposed in interim guidance Post 
received March 19 that the Embassy could pay for the 
individual flight, mark the bill "paid under protest," and 
send it back to Washington (per instructions in the foreign 
clearance guide).   Under this arrangement, Post would be 
responsible for payment of DIAL fees before takeoff.  Post 
recognizes that this is a last resort, but requests guidance 
on whether this is a genuine option in exceptional cases. 
 
¶7. (SBU) If none of these options is feasible, Post 
recommends that the Department consider canceling a 
high-level visit to illustrate that the GOI -- and the MEA in 
particular -- will pay a price for its failure to extend the 
courtesy of reliable access for visits of mutual benefit 
pending final resolution of our differences on this issue. 
END ACTION REQUEST. 
 
 
BURLEIGH