'Radar detected aircraft'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Air Force Chief Vice Marshal Sutria Tubagus has
\ndenied claims that this week's illegal incursion by two foreign
\naircraft into Kalimantan was a sign of weakness in Indonesia's
\nair defense system.<\/p>\n
\"Our radar system detected the two aircraft when they entered
\nthe Indonesian air space,\" Sutria said at the Armed Forces
\nheadquarters yesterday.<\/p>\n
National Air Defense Command Chief Rear Marshal Irawan Saleh
\nsaid the radar system had detected the French civil training
\naircraft long before they crossed the border into Indonesia.<\/p>\n
He said the radar could detect aircraft flying 200 miles
\noutside the exclusive economic zone. \"In 1996, we detected 57
\nforeign aircraft trying to enter Indonesia,\" he was quoted by
\nAntara as saying.<\/p>\n
Irawan said the authorities did not intercept the two French
\naircraft because they were civil training planes which were \"not
\ndangerous\".<\/p>\n
According to Sutria, there were no political motives behind
\nthe two training aircraft's intrusion. \"It happened only because
\nof an administrative error,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The Thunder Bird (TB-200) F-OHUT and F-OHUU are still
\nimpounded at Banjarmasin's Syamsuddin Noor Airport in South
\nKalimantan. They arrived Monday after refueling in Pontianak,
\nWest Kalimantan, on Feb. 9.<\/p>\n
The pilots, Sylvestre Lourent-Mariel, 28, and Ricceto-Fabrice,
\n27, have been detained for questioning. They lacked the necessary
\nflight approval from the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation,
\nimmigration clearance from the Armed Forces headquarters and
\nentry permits from the immigration department.<\/p>\n
Sutria said the pilots and their aircraft would be allowed to
\ncontinue their journey to Australia as soon as they obtained the
\nnecessary documents from the Indonesian authorities. (pan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/radar-detected-aircraft-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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