Sergio Vel\u00e1zquez\u00a0and\u00a0Jos\u00e9 Videla,\u00a0two pilots who worked on presidential aircraft during the governments of N\u00e9stor Kirchner (2003-2007) and Cristina Fern\u00e1ndez de Kirchner (2007-2015), have confirmed that they flew suitcases south, mainly to\u00a0Santa Cruz,\u00a0often \u00abwithout passengers.\u00bb<\/p>\n
The statements were made in the context of the so-called \u2018Cuadernos<\/em>\u2019 corruption notebooks trial in the TOF7 (Tribunal Oral Federal)\u00a0courtroom, where both witnesses ratified previous testimony confirming the transfer of padlocked luggage loaded by the private secretaries who worked for the ex-presidents.<\/p>\n Vel\u00e1zquez, a former Tango 01 pilot, maintained that the suitcases were directly loaded into the aircraft from the military platform at Aeroparque airport without passing through the scanners or the usual Customs controls.<\/p>\n He further testified that most of the baggage had a fixed\u00a0destination, since the cargoes\u00a0were mainly transferred in official flights\u00a0to the province\u00a0of Santa Cruz.<\/p>\n Videla, a pilot who flew Tango 10,\u00a0added fundamental\u00a0information about the Daniel Mu\u00f1oz, N\u00e9stor Kirchner\u2019s late private secretary, confirming that he flew south completely alone in the aircraft and even on one occasion with a suitcase he kept close to him, refusing to check it in and \u00abnot letting anybody touch it \u00bb during the entire flight.<\/p>\n Afterwards, he maintained that upon landing in\u00a0R\u00edo Gallegos in Argentina\u2019s south,\u00a0Mu\u00f1oz did not disembark at the airport terminal but at an extreme end of the landing-strip where he made a direct withdrawal with two or three cars.<\/p>\n He also ratified that the presidential\u00a0air fleet was further used to send newspapers and magazines which the Kirchner\u00a0couple wished to read while spending weekends in El Calafate\u00a0and\u00a0R\u00edo Gallegos, an allegation that previously reached the court.<\/p>\n Finally, he detailed that the aircraft often took off at 6am to deliver to Cristina and N\u00e9stor envelope containing a summary of the day\u2019s news coverage.<\/p>\n In conclusion, he indicated that the operational orders for these transfers arrived by fax, signed by then-presidential chief-of-staff Oscar Parrilli. At the close of his testimony, he estimated the cost of each hour of flight at around US$2,500 to US$3,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u2013 TIMES\/NA<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\nrelated news<\/h6>\n<\/p>\n<\/section>\n