Procurement Of Russian Su-35s In Priority List: New Indonesian AF Chief

Indonesia’s newly appointed Air Force Chief of staff Air Marshall Yuyu Sutisna has sworn to purchase Russia’s advanced Su-35 fighter jets at the earliest.

Speaking after his inauguration at the State Palace on Wednesday, Yuyu told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday: "I want the Sukhoi [purchase contract] to be signed as soon as possible, hopefully this month". The 11 Sukhoi units would replace the existing fleet of F5-E Tiger jet fighters. 

The Indonesian Military (TNI) had announced the planned acquisition of the 11 Russian-made Sukhoi Su-35 Flanker jet fighters last year. Russia has pledged to buy Indonesian commodities for half of the value of the contract, which was worth some US$1.14 billion, and provide a transfer-of-technology (ToT) worth another 35 percent.

In November 2017, Russia’s Rostec said that it will set up a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) unit in Indonesia for Sukhoi aircraft worth about 35% of the contract value.