Indonesia excludes Su-35 from fighter aircraft acquisition plans
The Indonesian government has announced that it will not proceed with the acquisition of Sukhoi Su-35 ‘Flanker-E’ multirole combat aircraft.
It has instead shortlisted the Dassault Rafale and the Boeing F-15EX Eagle II for the Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU), Air Chief Marshal Fadjar Prasetyo said.
Speaking to local media in Jakarta, Prasetyo confirmed that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has now abandoned plans to acquire Su-35s citing its budget among its considerations. The MoD is now looking to procure enough aircraft to equip two to three fighter squadrons, he added.
Although Prasetyo did not provide details on why the deal with Russia fell through, Janes assesses that such a decision has likely been affected by disputes with Russia over counter-trade terms and concerns that the Su-35 acquisition would lead the United States to impose sanctions on Jakarta under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
