(NSI News Source Info) JAKARTA, Indonesia - September 20, 2010: Indonesia has decided to buy six more Russian-built Sukhoi fighters to expand the country’s existing fleet, a senior military official said on Friday.Air Marshall Imam Sufaat, Air Force chief of staff, said the six extra planes were intended to form a squadron along with the 10 Sukhois the air force already has.
“Ten Sukhoi fighter jets are not adequate to give a deterrent effect given our vast airspace,” Sufaat was quoted as saying by the state-run Antara news agency.
He said Indonesia lagged behind neighboring Malaysia, which has 18 Sukhoi fighter jets, and Singapore with its 28 US-built F-15s.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has approved the plan, Sufaat said but added he was not sure about the timeframe of the purchase.Indonesia has been buying Sukhoi fighter jets since 2003.
It shifted its purchases of military equipment away from the United States after Washington imposed an arms embargo on Jakarta in early 1990s.
The US government has lifted most of the ban in recent years.
During a recent visit to Jakarta, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates announced the resumption of cooperation with Indonesian special forces due to measures to improve the unit’s human rights record.
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