ARMENIAN AIRCRAFT CREW SUSPECTED OF SMUGGLING

Armenpress
Sept 26, 2005

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS: A commercial manager of Armenia’s
biggest private carrier, ArmAvia, denied Friday rumors that the
Armenian crew operating Yerevan-Paris-Yerevan flight had been arrested
by French customs officers a week before, but admitted that the crew
had had some problems with customs officers.

The manager, Arthur Zakarian, said the crew were taken to the customs
office for examination, which showed that they breached some of
customs norms, established by French law. Zakarian said the pilots
were trying to bring from France more cigarettes than allowed by
customs regulations.

He said ArmAvia is carrying an internal investigation. He said the
crew are banned from operating flights, adding that the amount of
cigarettes the pilots were trying to take out of France was small.