Australian military keen on IPTN plane
Australian military keen on IPTN plane
JAKARTA (JP): The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is considering buying Indonesian-made CN 235 planes to replace its squadron of aging light transport aircraft, the Antara news agency reported yesterday.
RAAF Chief of Staff Air Marshal L.B. Fisher told the news agency that Australia is currently weighing between CN 235 and the Italian-built G 222 to replace its current fleets of Canadian-built Caribou.
The RAAF is considering rejuvenating its fleets of light military transport aircraft in 1998 and 2000, Fisher said.
He was speaking during a reception hosted by Indonesian Ambassador to Australia Sabam Siagian in Canberra on Thursday to welcome the participation of the CN 235 plane at the upcoming Melbourne Air Show next week.
PT Industri Pesawat Terbang Nusantara (IPTN), the state company which manufactures the CN 235, is sending a military version of the CN 235, dubbed the Phoenix.
The Antara report did not say how many planes the RAAF will need.
Fisher said the decision on which plane Australia would purchase will be made by the Ministry of Defense, which is currently also studying the program to overhaul the RAAF's fleets of Hercules transport planes and Black Hawks helicopters.
Fisher said that in his opinion CN 235 and G 222 are the top products in their class. G 222 is slightly wider but it was designed in 1969 and might be outdated.
The CN 235 was designed in 1983.
The marshal will have a chance to see the CN 235 at work during a flight demonstration scheduled at the RAAF base in Fairbarn in Canberra on Friday.
At the reception, Sabam said that the promotion of the CN 235 plane in Australia is part of Indonesia's offer of cooperation with its neighbors.
Heru Santoso, IPTN's vice commercial director, told Antara that for the Melbourne Air Show, the company is sending the military version of CN 235 with aircrew.
The plane has been touring Australia for the past week for a series of flight demonstrations at various Australian military bases, including one near Darwin in the Northern Territory, Amberly near Brisbane, the Nowra naval base in New South Wales and the main RAAF base in Richmond, Sydney. (emb)