Indonesia delays procurement of ex-Qatari Mirage 2000-5 fighter aircraft
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| A QEAF Mirage 2000-5 fighter. Photo c/o Defense Mirror. |
The Indonesian Ministry of Defense (MoD) has confirmed that it would be delaying the planned procurement of twelve refurbished Mirage 2000-5 fighter aircraft from Qatar.
Indonesian MOD Spokesman Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak confirmed in a TV interview that the procurement has been postponed due to budget constraints, as the funding request for the fighters was not approved by the Ministry of Finance.
Instead, the MOD will focus on upgrading the Indonesian Air Force’s (TNI-AU) existing fighter fleet which includes the American-made F-16 Fighting Falcon, and the Russian-made Su-27 and Su-30 Flanker aircraft.
Indonesia announced in June 2023 that it will be procuring at least 12 French-made Mirage 2000-5 fighter aircraft that were retired by the Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF), composed on 9 Mirage 2000-5EDA single-seat and 3 Mirage 2000-5DDA twin-seat aircraft brokered by Czech defense company Excalibur International
The aircraft were suppose to be delivered to the TNI-AU in 2 years, and will be used to familiarize TNI-AU pilots and ground crew on French-made aircraft in preparation for the arrival of the Dassault Rafale, and fill a gap on the TNI-AU’s air defense capability due to the retirement of the F-5E/F Tiger II fleet, and the diminishing capability and quantity of its Hawk 209 light combat aircraft fleet.
The Indonesian MOD mentioned that the ex-Qatari Mirage 2000-5 still has around 70% of airframe lifespan left, but were retired early due to the introduction of new fighters by the QEAF.
Indonesia previously made several announcements to procure new and used fighters for the TNI-AU, but so far the deal to acquire 42 brand new Dassault Rafale fighters pushed through.
Discussions are still underway for the planned procurement of F-15EX Eagle II fighters from the US, as well as the final quantity of KF-21 Boramae fighers to be procured under a joint
program with South Korea.
[1] Reuters
[2] The Diplomat
Reviewed by Asia Pacific Defense Journal
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January 08, 2024
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