Indonesia manufactures presidential aircraft

Indonesia manufactures presidential aircraft

Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung, West Java

State-owned aircraft maker PT Dirgantara Indonesia handed over
two CN-235 planes to South Korea, the last aircraft of an eight-
plane package ordered by Korea's airforce under a US$130 million
contract signed in October 1997.

Dirgantara president Edwin Sudarmo said Thursday that his
company had previously sent six planes in three consignments, one
in December last year and in February and April this year.

The previous six planes were designed for military purposes,
while the last two were designed for use by the president.

One of the planes would be used by the president for domestic
flights, Edwin said.

"Aside from it being equipped with a luxury interior and
communication technology, some parts of the body of the planes
are bullet-proof."

The two planes, captained jointly by pilots from the company
and the South Korean Airforce, will land in three different
countries before arriving in Seoul.

During the ceremony, it was also revealed that the company had
received orders for similar planes from several countries.

"To date, we've received orders for presidential planes from
three nations (including Korea), namely Saudi Arabia and
Malaysia," Edwin said, adding that Pakistan was also interested.

This should show that the Indonesian made airplanes have
gained increasing trust from within the international community,
which is encouraging, Edwin said.

The Indonesian government itself usually orders presidential
planes from western countries. Indonesia currently uses a British
Aerospace-made plane.