MOSCOW, August 26 - RAPSI. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) has opened a case over the Federal Air Transport Agencys (Rosaviatsiya) abuse of the state procurement process, the Service said.

The case was opened on August 23.

In 2008, Rosaviatsiya held a state procurement tender for aircraft.

The tender called for a mid-range transport airplane and a multi-purpose helicopter together in one lot, the FAS stated. According to the FAS, because planes and helicopters are not technologically or functionally interlinked, their coupling in one lot might have reduced the number of potential tender participants and prevented competition.

A hearing has been slated for October 3.