Proposed US Hercules repair hub in West Java sparks debate on what Indonesia stands to gain and lose
analysis Asia
Proposed US Hercules repair hub in West Java sparks debate on what Indonesia stands to gain and lose
Indonesia’s Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin says his country is working on using Kertajati International Airport in West Java for such a hub proposed by his US counterpart Pete Hegseth.
JAKARTA: Indonesia’s plan to turn its underutilised Kertajati International Airport in Majalengka, West Java, into a regional maintenance hub for Hercules military aircraft at the United States government’s request could bring economic benefits for the country, say analysts.
But they also warn that the plan triggers questions on whether it would draw Indonesia closer to the US’ military architecture in the Indo-Pacific, which could be at odds with Jakarta’s long-standing stance of free and active foreign policy and non-alignment.
The plan has also sparked controversy because of the lack of details provided by the Indonesian government so far, the experts add.
“When we talk about geopolitics, it’s problematic because we don’t know yet what the plan is,” said Yohanes Sulaiman, a defence and international relations expert from the University of Jenderal Achmad Yani in West Java.
“It could be a hub, or it could be a maintenance facility. This is the big question.”
WHAT IS THE PLAN?
Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin announced the proposal during a meeting with lawmakers in parliament at the end of May.
Sjafrie said that when he met his US counterpart, Pete Hegseth, last year at the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Defence Ministers Meeting Plus, Hegseth made Indonesia a unique offer.
“He offered: ‘What if I centralise maintenance for the C-130s throughout Asia in Indonesia at our expense?’ I reported to the president, who said: ‘Give Kertajati’. We’re working on it,” said Sjafrie, referring to President Prabowo Subianto.
No other details were revealed and it is unclear if the plan is meant for C-130 aircraft owned by the US specifically.
The C-130 Hercules is a turboprop military transport aircraft used by many air forces around the world due to its versatility in tactical airlift operations.
It was launched in the 1950s and American manufacturer Lockheed Martin has produced dozens of variants over the years.
Defence analyst Alman Helvas Ali from Marapi Consulting and Advisory said the plan should not automatically be read as turning Kertajati into a US military base.
He said that the proposal, as he understands it from people familiar with the matter, concerned maintenance capability for the newer C-130J Hercules aircraft, rather than older Hercules variants already serviced elsewhere in the region.
If true, this would mean the airport would not be a military hub, as it would serve only the C-130J.
In response to CNA’s queries, Indonesia’s defence ministry said it could not share more details at this stage.
“The two parties discussed opportunities for collaboration in the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of Hercules/C-130 aircraft, which is still in the early and exploratory stages,” the defence ministry spokesperson Rico Sirait told CNA on Jun 5.
“Currently, no final decisions have been made regarding the cooperation model, financing scheme, service coverage, operational targets, or other technical aspects.”
Rico added that all of these matters required further discussion among the relevant parties, while taking into account Indonesia’s national interests.
According to Alman, the role of the government would most likely be as a facilitator in a business-to-business arrangement, with Lockheed Martin providing technical assistance to a local partner.
He said it seemed to be a commercial plan and that was different from the US setting up a military maintenance depot of its own in Indonesia.
The main problem is that the government has not explained the plan clearly enough, including who will own the facility, who will control access, whether US military personnel will be stationed there and what role Indonesian companies will play, said Alman.
Without answers, the issue becomes vulnerable to what he described as public “paranoia”, referring to the controversies surrounding the plan, with some questioning what Indonesia would need to give in return if the budget is from the US.
Yohanes from the University of Jenderal Achmad Yani in West Java shared similar views.
“It really depends on the terms of the agreement. And actually, Hercules’ repairs aren’t limited to just one area,” said Yohanes.
“They are not just in Indonesia but also in Japan, Canada, and Australia, for example.”
WHY KERTAJATI?
Indonesia already has some Hercules maintenance capability, including through the Garuda Maintenance Facility Aero Asia at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Banten, on the outskirts of Jakarta.
It is operated by PT Garuda Maintenance Facility Aero Asia Tbk. Since 2021, it has maintained eight Hercules C-130 aircraft owned by Indonesia without controversies after being certified by Lockheed Martin.
Alman said the US may view existing facilities, such as the one in Banten, as more developed and suitable as the site of the new hub.
Indonesia on the other hand would want to give Kertajati a boost, as it has been commercially unsuccessful.
Opened officially in 2019, Kertajati International Airport in West Java has long been seen as an underperforming infrastructure project.
Built with ambitious plans during former president Joko Widodo’s tenure, the 1,800-ha airport, equivalent to roughly 3,360 American football fields, has struggled to attract sufficient passenger demand and secure regular commercial routes.
Kertajati served about 413,000 passengers or just about 3 per cent of its 12 million target in 2024, according to government data.
The location of the airport - a 2.5-hour drive from Jakarta and a 1.5-hour drive from West Java’s capital Bandung - is partly why it has underperformed, said observers.
For a military aircraft maintenance hub, however, some of Kertajati’s weakness