RI considering buying six US-made F-16s

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia is considering buying six US-made F-16 Fighting Falcon jet fighters to increase its air force`s combat readiness, Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono said.

"We are considering a US offer to sell six F-16 jet fighters with payments to be made in four to five years` time," Juwono said after accompanying visiting US Defense Secretary Robert Gates at a meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the State Palace here Monday.

Juwono said the country would buy the six F-16 jet fighters under a multi-years financing scheme agreed upon by the Finance Ministry and the House of Representatives (DPR)`s Commission I for information, defense and foreign affairs.

"We are also still considering whether the payments will be made through the FMF and FMS mechanisms. This will all depend on the DPR because this year the government is focusing the state budget on improving the people`s welfare," he said.

He said the planned purchase of the six F-16 jet fighters would not affect the government`s commitment to procuring Russian-made military armament systems.

"Each (arm producing) country has its own advantages and disadvantages. Our difficulty to buy US-made armaments lies with the bureaucracy while our difficulty to buy Russian-made rests with the payments," he said.

Meanwhile, Rear Marshal Soenaryo, commander of the Indonesian Air Force`s material maintenance division, said the country still has 10 F-16 jet fighters six of which were still airworthy.

"The ten are of A/B types. We will increase their capacity to make them equal to the latest variants of Block 52 of C/D multi role F-16 Fighting Falcons, particularly their avionic systems," he said.