MELBOURNE, Australia — Indonesia has confirmed it signed a contract this yr to purchase Qatar’s fleet of French-built fighter jets in an effort to plug a long-standing air defense gap.
The Indonesian Air Force said in a news release it had signed a $795.14 million contract in January to purchase the Qatar Emiri Air Force’s fleet of 12 Dassault Mirage 2000 fighters. The Middle Eastern nation operates a fleet of nine, single-seat Mirage 2000-5EDA aircraft and three, twin-seat Mirage 2000-5DDA aircraft.
The contract was signed with Czech company Excalibur International, which is able to act because the go-between. Indonesia will use foreign loans to finance the deal.
In response to the Indonesia Air Force, the contract includes 14 engines, three years of support services, ground support equipment, crew training and other support. Under the deal, the aircraft will probably be delivered inside two years from the contract date.
Indonesia plans to station the Mirage 2000s on the Supadio air base at Pontianak on the west coast of the island of Kalimantan. The bottom, near the South China Sea, and residential to the Air Force’s 1 Squadron, which operates the BAE Hawk 109 trainer and Hawk 209 light combat aircraft.
The statement noted the choice was made to accumulate the Qatari jets as a stopgap measure following the retirement of Northrop Grumman F-5E/F Tiger II interceptors and the obsolescence of the Hawks.
“It is taken into account that the acquisition of the ex-Qatari Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft is the precise step to satisfy the readiness requirements of the Indonesian Air Force,” the statement read.
Indonesia had also planned to purchase Russian-made Sukhoi Su-35 Flanker fighters but needed to cancel that effort as a consequence of sanctions imposed on Russia. It as an alternative turned to France, having signed a contract in early 2022 to accumulate six of what’s hoped to be an eventual 42 Dassault Rafale omnirole fighters. The primary three Rafales will probably be delivered in 2026.
Indonesia can also be negotiating the acquisition of Boeing F-15EX Eagle fighters, with the AiF force revealing that it’s discussing the letter of offer and acceptance with the U.S. government.
Along with two squadrons of Hawks, Indonesia’s AiF force flies two squadrons of Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcons and a squadron of Russian Sukhoi Su-27/30 Flanker fighters.
Under its minimum force requirements, the archipelago nation of greater than 17,000 islands seeks to have 10 fighter squadrons by 2024, a deadline it is going to likely miss.
Mike Yeo is the Asia correspondent for Defense News.