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