Air Force to try out Sukhoi this week<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The new kids on the block in the Air Force's fleet of jet
\nfighters -- two Sukhoi Su-27SKs and two Sukhoi Su-30MKs -- will
\nbe test-flown between Sept. 10 and Sept. 11 after their delivery
\nfrom Russia last week.<\/p>\n
Air Force chief of staff Marshal Chappy Hakim said two of the
\nnew warplanes were undergoing final checks, while the other two
\nwere being assembled at the Iswahyudi air base near the East Java
\ntown of Madiun and would be ready for their maiden flight soon.<\/p>\n
\"As soon as we complete assembling the jets we will try them
\nout. But they will be used by the Air Force from Oct. 5,\" Chappy
\nsaid on the sidelines of the Indonesian Air Games at Halim
\nPerdanakusumah air base in East Jakarta.<\/p>\n
During his visit to the Iswahyudi air base last week, Chappy
\nwitnessed the process of assembling the warplanes.<\/p>\n
The Air Force has sent eight pilots and 18 technicians to
\nRussia to undergo special training to operate the new warplanes,
\nthe first Russian-made aircraft since Indonesia turned to the
\nWest for warfare technology in the late 1960s.<\/p>\n
The pilots and technicians are expected to arrive home on
\nTuesday for the test-flight.<\/p>\n
Chappy said the eight senior pilots would also be tasked with
\ntraining 12 colleagues, selected by the Air Force to fly the
\nRussian jet fighters.<\/p>\n
He said he needed 20 pilots in anticipation of the
\ngovernment's plan to buy more Sukhois over the next two years.<\/p>\n
Previously, Indonesian Military chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto
\ntold the House of Representatives the government would propose
\nthe purchase of 10 Su-27SKs and two Su-30MKs in the 2004 and 2005
\nfiscal years.<\/p>\n
Chappy suggested that the House approve the proposal as the
\ncountry was in dire need of jet fighters to safeguard its
\nterritory, spanning over thousands of kilometers.<\/p>\n
He said the Air Force should have at least three squadrons of
\nwarplanes as reliable as Sukhois.<\/p>\n
\"At least two or three more squadrons will significantly
\ncontribute to our efforts to carry out duties, although this is
\nstill far from ideal,\" Chappy said.<\/p>\n
Indonesia dropped its plan to buy one squadron of Sukhoi SU-
\n27s in 1997, due to the economic crisis.<\/p>\n
The Air Force currently has 200 jet fighters, but 75 percent
\nof them are unable to fly due to a lack of spare parts, as a
\nresult of the arms embargo imposed by the United States following
\nthe bloody violence in East Timor in 1999.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/air-force-to-try-out-sukhoi-this-week-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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