One Billion Rupiah Horse Simulator Owned by Police Animal Unit: What Is Its Urgency?
DEPOK — The Animal Police Directorate of the Police Support Operations Command of the Indonesian National Police owns four horse riding simulators worth one billion rupiah per unit for training its personnel.
The head of the Police Public Relations Division, Inspector General Johnny Eddizon Isir, revealed that the horse simulator is part of training facilities procured using the 2016 budget allocation.
“The price is one billion rupiah per unit,” Isir told journalists on Tuesday, 10 March 2026.
This horse simulator has been in use since 2016 to help reduce the risk to officers when riding live horses.
“This is urgent because with a simulator, we certainly minimise risk. Regardless of whether the animal is docile or spirited, their inherent wild instinct can be dangerous,” said Kombes Gatot Aris, head of the Equestrian Sub-division of the Animal Police Directorate, when met by Kompas.com on Wednesday, 11 March 2026.
The horse simulator unit is also part of the provision of equipment and infrastructure for training police officers as horse handlers.
“So we teach through the simulator with specific equipment designed for jumping, for example,” he added.
An officer from the Mounted Unit Detachment of the Animal Police Directorate named Indah estimated that training time for officers could take approximately one to two weeks until they become proficient with the horse simulator.
The estimate was based on full-day training sessions that she participated in, which included training in position, muscle development, posture, and riding technique.
“In my personal assessment, the accuracy level of using the simulator compared to riding an actual horse is about nine out of ten. So it is indeed extremely accurate,” said Indah.
The first simulator is used for basic riding techniques, ranging from walking, running, to galloping or horse running movements with rhythmic foot patterns.
The second simulator is used for learning jumping or hurdle jumping, with the simulation screen displaying terrain with multiple obstacles.
The third and fourth simulators are used for training speed and racing.