The aircraft need to be flown to Burnpur since the transport department of SAIL's Research & Development Centre for Iron & Steel has found that transporting them by road was not feasible. But at least Rs 12 lakh are needed to bring the aircraft back to flying condition, according to a SAIL official. He added that no fund had been released so far for the import of spares needed to do the repair work.

Another source said that SAIL was also considering a proposal to sell the two aircraft in their present condition, instead of moving them to Burnpur, to avoid further expenditure.

The decision to close SAIL's Ranchi airbase and transfer the two aircraft to Burnpur was taken nearly six months back, following the recommendations of a high-power committee constituted bySAIL to study its aviation policy and purchase of aircraft.

The Ranchi base was set up in the sixties with two aircraft -- one four-seater and a five-seater. The operation of the aircraft, which use piston engine petrol, is more expensive than any modern aircraft, which run on turbine engine with jet fuel.

Moreover, one of the aircraft was grounded two years ago and the other one is not fit for flying either.

The SAIL official said that possibilities of transporting the aircraft to Burnpur airbase by road were examined by the transport department of RDCIS. They found that it was not feasible since even after dismantling parts of the body there will not be sufficient clearance on the two sides.

He said that SAIL was incurring heavy losses in its aviation departments in Ranchi and Bhilai, both of which maintain over two dozen employees. The Bhilai base does not have any aircraft since the crash of its lone aircraft on February 2 last year.

The Ranchi aviation department is also defunct since its twoaircraft were grounded. The official said that the overhead cost in each of the centres was of the order of Rs 30 lakh per year.