Hawk-100 jet fighter crashes in W. Kalimantan<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): An Indonesian Air Force Hawk-100 jet fighter
\ncrashed in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, on Thursday morning, while
\nminutes later sparks were observed coming from the left engine of
\nan Airbus A-310 passenger carrier belonging to airline company PT
\nAIRWAGON International (AWAIR) only seconds after it landed at
\nthe Sepinggan Airport in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan.<\/p>\n
The jet fighter crash killed both pilot Lt. Col. Bustari and
\nco-pilot First Lt. Donny Simanjuntak, while the Airbus incident
\nonly left some passengers shocked and several others suffering
\nminor injuries, Antara reported.<\/p>\n
Air Force spokesman Commodore Bachrum Rasir said the two-seat
\ntrainer\/ground attack jet fighter, produced by British Aerospace
\nLtd., crashed at 10:18 a.m. (local time) near Gertak Kuning
\nvillage, some 500 meters off the Supadio Airbase while it was
\nconducting a routine flight.<\/p>\n
\"An investigation team has just flown to Pontianak to look
\ninto the accident,\" Bachrum told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Bustari, a senior pilot in the Air Force was also chief of the
\nHawk-100 squadron at the airbase.<\/p>\n
The ill-fated jet fighter was one of 32 Hawk-100s and Hawk-
\n200s which were purchased from Britain in 1995. The Air Force is
\nstill waiting for the dispatch of another four Hawk-100s and
\nHawk-200s scheduled to arrive before December this year.<\/p>\n
\"We have several Hawk squadrons that, in addition to the one
\nin Pontianak, are stationed in Pekanbaru, Riau, and Kupang, East
\nNusa Tenggara,\" said Bachrum.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, AWAIR Director for Operation Yasril Ismail
\ndismissed reports that the engine of the Airbus airplane was
\nburning when it landed at the Sepinggan Airport.<\/p>\n
\"There were only flames from the exhaust pipe, like what
\nhappens on cars. The airplane landed safely and no one was
\ninjured,\" Yasril said in a media conference on Thursday night.<\/p>\n
The airplane was one of two Airbus A-310-300 units, currently
\noperated by AWAIR to provide flights from Jakarta to Surabaya,
\nMedan and Balikpapan. The two are leased from Singapore-based
\nRegion Air at a cost of around US$225,000 per unit per month.<\/p>\n
Detained<\/p>\n
Bachrum also confirmed that the dispatch of one F-5 Tiger jet
\nfighter and five units of spare-parts for bombers have been
\ndetained overseas following the United States' suspended military
\naids to Indonesia last November.<\/p>\n
He said the order to hold the jet fighter was issued while it
\nhad stopped over in Los Angeles for repairs.<\/p>\n
\"We also have three units of jet engines detained in South
\nKorea and another unit in New Zealand,\" he said, adding that the
\ndispatch of 23 Hawk spare-part items have also been delayed
\nbecause of the military aid suspension.<\/p>\n
He said the Indonesian Air Force has let the United States
\n\"keep\" the F-5 jet fighter until the suspension is lifted, while
\nthe force was running short of funds to purchase the spare parts
\nneeded for the maintenance of other aircraft.<\/p>\n
Bachrum said South Korea and New Zealand had refused to repair
\nthe jet engines because the military aid suspension prevented the
\ntwo countries, which gained their license for such repair work
\nfrom the United States, from doing so.<\/p>\n
The United States government has suspended its military
\ntraining assistance, including the provision and maintenance of
\nmilitary equipment and spare-parts, to Indonesia since last
\nNovember following the bloody rioting in East Timor days after
\nthe announcement of the ballot results on Sept. 4, 1999.<\/p>\n
The alleged detainment of the Indonesian jet fighters,
\nhowever, was refuted by Indonesian Military chief Adm. Widodo AS.<\/p>\n
\"No, they're not detained. How can you say so?\" Widodo told
\nreporters after chairing the inauguration ceremony of the new
\nNavy Chief Adm. Indroko Sastrowiryono, who replaced Adm. Achmad
\nSutjipto, in Surabaya on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Bachrum admitted that the Air Force depended largely on
\nforeign military assistance in repairing its warplanes because of
\ntheir own limited budget.<\/p>\n
\"The warplanes' maintenance costs are very expensive and they
\ncould not be covered by the limited annual budget,\" he said.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Minister of Defense Mahfud M.D. called on the
\ngovernment and the House of Representatives to increase the
\ndefense budget to around two percent of the gross domestic
\nproduct (GDP) to allow the military to be more flexible in
\ncarrying out its defense duties.<\/p>\n
Besides the Hawk and F-5 jet fighters, the Air Force also
\noperates two squadrons of US-made F-16 Falcon jet fighters
\nstationed in Jakarta and in Madiun, East Java.<\/p>\n
In a separate development, Speaker of the Russian parliament,
\nDuma, Gennady Seleznev said on Thursday that talks between
\nIndonesian and Russian experts on military technology cooperation
\nwere underway, exploring the type of military equipment needed by
\nJakarta.<\/p>\n
Seleznev said Russia's latest helicopters, especially designed
\nfor police work, might suit Indonesia's needs now that President
\nAbdurrahman Wahid's government has given greater responsibility
\nto the police to maintain security and order.<\/p>\n
\"Military cooperation that benefits both countries should be
\nwell developed without interference of any third party,\" said
\nSeleznev, who led the Russian delegation at the 104th conference
\nof the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Jakarta. (rms\/ego\/imn)<\/p>",
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