Indonesia must keep abreast of developments in defense equipment technology because the quality of defense equipment weighs on the professionalism of national military soldiers.
By
KOMPAS TEAM
·5 minutes read
KOMPAS/AGUIDO ADRI
A number of fighter planes form a formation crossing over the joint training location of the Indonesian National Armed Forces at Monitor Point 12 of the Asembagus Marine Combat Training Center, Situbondo, East Java, Thursday (12/9/2019).
JAKARTA, KOMPAS - With the main weaponry system (alutsista) being a determinant in the professionalism of Indonesian Military (TNI) soldiers, defense equipment procurement and improvement must be continuously pursued by taking into account the quality and life cycle through maintenance and capacity building.
The fulfillment of the TNI\'s minimum essential force (MEF) strategic plan is still far from expectations. Based on data from the Alutsista Work Committee of the House of Representatives’ Commission I, as of December 2018, the Indonesian Army was only able to meet the minimum needs of 74.62 percent, with the Navy 68.72 percent and the Air Force 44.40 percent.
A Kompas poll on May 17-19, which involved 511 respondents in 34 provinces, shows that 92.8 percent of respondents stated that in order to maintain Indonesia\'s territorial sovereignty, the government needed to periodically add new quality defense equipment.
As many as 46.2 percent of respondents said that what really needed to be added to the number of defense equipment was the sea territory, followed by air (27.8 percent) and land (26 percent).
Head of the Information Service for the Indonesian Air Force, First Marshal TNI Indan Gilang Buldansyah, said that the age at which the defense equipment was operated by the air force ranks varied.
For example, the C-130B Hercules transport aircraft has been operating since 1960. The SA-330 Puma helicopter has been in operation since 1978. Currently, the Indonesian Air Force is still waiting for a replacement for the squadron of F5 fighters which were grounded in 2016 after 35 years of service.
We do not look at the year the defense equipment was made, but its readiness and worthiness to operate.
Apart from the required sophisticated defense equipment, according to Indan, the professionalism of soldiers is also determined by the sustainability of coaching and training carried out in stages and levels.
"The higher the defense equipment readiness, the higher the frequency of our soldiers in undergoing the training, which will lead to an increase in the professionalism of the soldiers. We do not look at the year the defense equipment was made, but its readiness and worthiness to operate,” Indan said last week.
KOMPAS/AGUIDO ADRI
A series of shots from several tanks of the Indonesian National Army (TNI) towards the target point in a joint TNI exercise codenamed "Dharma Yudha 2019", at Monitor Point 12 of the Asembagus Marine Combat Training Center, Situbondo, East Java, Thursday (12/9/2019) .
First Admiral Julius Widjojono, head of the Indonesian Navy\'s Information Service, said that the condition of the main weapon defense equipment would certainly have an impact on the professionalism of soldiers.
In regard of the Indonesian Navy, defense equipment is faced with natural conditions that often turn quite extreme. Therefore, the condition of the defense equipment greatly affects the psychological condition of the soldiers on duty.
"Of course, the condition of the defense equipment has an impact on the level of pride of the soldiers. It is natural soldiers manning good defense equipment in security and pride, in the end their professionalism will be even higher. Faced with the strength of neighboring countries, they will be more confident,” Julius said.
Care and maintenance
Currently, in general 60 percent of the Indonesian Navy\'s defense equipment is over the age of 30. The oldest ship is KRI Dewaruci, which was built in 1953. To cope with the aging defense equipment so that it can operate properly, periodic care and maintenance are carried out according to the procedure.
Maintenance is carried out at the organic level, intermediate level, depot level, capacity building (PUP), farm out repair and emergency ship repair.
"Alutsista growing old certainly needs more attention in time and energy, in care and maintenance," Julius said.
The Indonesian Air Force has a scheduled and unscheduled care and maintenance, divided into light, moderate and heavy levels. Light level maintenance can be carried out in the Air Squadron, medium level in the Engineering Squadron, and heavy level in the maintenance depot or at the military equipment factory.
The operated military defense equipment has gone through a due diligence process by a number of competent agencies, both internal and external. "Even though a military equipment is classified as old, it can still be operated if it is declared worthy of use," Indan said.
Alutsista growing old certainly needs more attention in time and energy, in care and maintenance.
KOMPAS/AGUIDO ADRI
A number of helicopters passed over the battlefield after carrying out a series of attacks on the enemy during a joint Indonesian National Army (TNI) exercise at the Asembagus Marine Combat Training Center 12 Monitoring Point, Situbondo, East Java, Thursday (12/9/2019).
Weapon’s life cycle
Military researcher from Lab45, Andi Widjajanto, said that military weapons have life cycle related to maintenance efforts for their upgrading.
He pointed to KRI Nanggala-402 submarine, which is classified into the submarine type 209/1300. Currently there are 61 units of type 209 submarines in use in a number of countries. Of that number, four (1100 and 1200 classes) have been grounded.
"The age of military equipment is relative. What is important is that the life cycle of a military equipment is optimized," he said.
Andi underlined the importance of modern defense equipment to increase the professionalism and capability of the TNI in facing the development of a strategic military environment.
He added that a country needed to have weapons or defense equipment suitable and relevant to the latest technological developments. Many countries have switched from the 4th to the 5th generation fighters.
According to him, it is important for Indonesia to be able to deploy the sophisticated military armada so that the TNI can safeguard its doctrine and strategy in facing the threat of war in the future.
Meanwhile, House Commission I member Muhammad Farhan spoke about the TNI\'s lagging defense equipment, especially for combat operations.
He encouraged the TNI to rearrange the MEF in 2024. In the process of fulfilling it, he considered that the import of defense equipment and cooperation with foreign parties were still needed because not all of the needs for defense equipment could be met from the domestic industry, let alone to obtain the latest weaponry technology.
"The domestic military defense industry needs to increase research, because all military defense industries in the world are built with high technology research," Farhan said.
Regarding the strategic plan of the Indonesian Air Forces until 2024, Indan revealed that the priority defense equipment would be combat aircraft, transport aircraft, radar and missiles. For the Indonesian Navy, Julius said his focus was on ships, aircraft and marine combat materials. (SYA/NIA/NAD/EDN)
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