Posted on 09/30/2010 7:53:46 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
Indonesia Plans 180 Flankers Plus F-16s
Sep 30, 2010
By Bradley Perrett
BEIJING — Indonesia intends to acquire 180 Sukhoi Flankers and also to buy Lockheed Martin F-16s, Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro says, setting out plans for a massive expansion of the Southeast Asian country’s air combat force.
If Indonesia is serious about buying 180 Flankers, then Canberra will almost certainly fund the Royal Australian Air Force’s plan for 100 Lockheed Martin F-35s, says Andrew Davies, an analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. Until now, there was a significant chance that Australia would buy fewer F-35s.
The Sukhoi fleet will be built up by 2024, with 18 aircraft in each of 10 squadrons, Purnomo says. F-16s will replace BAE Systems Hawks, the government’s Antara news agency says in a report carrying Purnomo’s statement.
If the country does buy 180 Flankers and if it can operate them efficiently — two big ifs — then it will have transformed an air force that now has negligible combat capability.
Indonesia has been operating its current small force of Flankers, a mix of Su-27s and Su-30s, with poor levels of efficiency and availability. Analysts believe that its nine Northrop F-5s are in worse shape. Eight of 12 F-16As and Bs ordered in the 1980s are grounded.
The delivery of three Flankers this week took the force of that type to 10. The government previously said it would buy an additional six.
“To defend our nation’s sovereignty, we have set a target to procure 180 Sukhoi jet fighters to form 10 squadrons,” Purnomo reportedly says.
Besides Australia, the Indonesian buildup also would cause concerns in Singapore and Malaysia, according to Davies, although Leonard Sebastian, a Singapore-based specialist on Indonesia, thinks that Indonesia’s neighbors, including Australia, will not react too strongly.
The Indonesian air force is “pretty weak on human resources — not just the pilots but also the support personnel,” Sebastian says, doubting that the country could operate the Flanker force efficiently.
There is less doubt that it can buy them, he adds. Indonesia has been enjoying strong mineral prices stoked by Chinese demand. And building up the air force, rather than the army, would accord with the country’s policy of creating armed forces that are more technically advanced and professional.
The minister says the strength of the Indonesian economy is helping the government pay for its arms program.
Davies, who thinks Indonesia eventually will have a large number of Flankers but not as many as 180, points out that countries across Southeast Asia are focusing increasingly on advanced military technology.
Purnomo does not say how many F-16s Indonesia wants, but the country is operating six Hawk 100 trainers and 20 Hawk 200 light attack aircraft. Two years ago the government said it wanted to buy a squadron of F-16s between 2010 and 2014.
Any further F-16s may be secondhand. The defense ministry said in July that the U.S. was offering surplus fighters at low prices.
For imports of new weapons, Indonesia will insist on technology transfer and 40% of production work, Deputy Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin says.
Sell Australia 30 F-22 s to negate the Flanhers. Bonus-it keeps the F-22 line open.
Confessing my ignorance here - Why would Australia be concerned about a build-up of the Indonesian AF? I would think China might get more miffed than Australia.
Pecos- Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world.
Australia’s strategic posture in the Cold War was expressly aimed at containing Indonesia. The F-111 was acquired to drop a nuke on Jakarta. While things have thawed down in recent decades, some level of suspicion would probably remain-Australian aircraft and ships were reportedly on trigger-edge during the East Timor election crisis in 1999.
The Republic of Indonesia has the world’s largest population of Muslims.
Answer me this -
Why is it that “HIgh technology” and “large Muslim population” are never found in the same article?
180 ComBlock A/C - is there a whiff of payoff in the air?
They do have funds from their mineral/petroleum exports for their purchases. About the SU-30 specifically, it’s ideal for their requirements with its range and payload. Only an F-16 equipped with conformal fuel tanks would match it assuming that the F-15E wouldn’t be offered.
It's kinda hard to tell for some reason...
Yup, already knew that. I just haven’t personally seen news reports of friction between the two countries except for the East Timor situation - which didn’t seem important enough to cause an alert status for strike aircraft (noted by another poster). I’m not nearly as insular as my posts on this topic may seem, just out of the loop, I guess.
Indonesia has the world’s largest population of Muslims. .................................. Australia has a large land mass that is 2/3rds unpopulated, land that could be settled, made fertile, and utilized by over crowded nations. Nothing new, it was the goal of Imperial Japan in the late 30’s.
Indonesia is not ruled by Wahhabis, therefore it has been on the quiet side of Islam. They were also under Communist influence in the 50’s -60’s, so their ties with Russia are not new and there is trade with China. China is a super power with the worlds largest population, why would they worry about a area made up of Islands? Indonesia was taken over by the Japanese Army in WW II, and they remained to keep control of the area after the hostilities ended. As far as China is concerned, Indonesia is nothing more than a gnat on the back of an elephant.
“The defense ministry said in July that the U.S. was offering surplus fighters at low prices.”
I’m sure Oba$tard will give his islamic boyhood home a GREAT deal!
So...let's buy 180 more of 'em?
“Indonesia has the world’s largest population of Muslims. .................................. Australia has a large land mass that is 2/3rds unpopulated, land that could be settled, made fertile, and utilized by over crowded nations”
Muslims are well known for the way they settle and make the deserts bloom with agriculture and civilization. I can’t imagine they could do better than Aussies. Guess that doesn’t mean they won’t try.
But i think war down there would only result from Aussies needing to protect trade routes and offshore oil. Or from them shouldering the local burdens of civilization when the cannibals on New Guinea, or others like them, run amock.
Easy to tell - intakes on the F15 are alongside, not underneath as on the Flanker.
It is about China, but the majority of FR will tell you differently.....
I have no doubt they can pay for them
My point was can they keep them flying? So far, they have failed at the ‘test’.
I could be a maritime surveilance A/C for anti-prirate patrolsm, but they don’t do that. So - why 180 Attack A/C?
They have their fair share of disputes with the Chicoms and plenty of oil/gas rich islands to patrol. MPAs can only help to a point-they are planning to buy plenty of subs.
It’ll be tough on the maintenance mechanics having to translate Russian and English markings on the aircraft.
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