Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto's spokesman Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak confirmed the news on the Kabar Petang program broadcast by Indonesian TV One on the evening of January 1, according to Defense Security Asia . "The plan to buy Mirage 2000-5 fighters has been temporarily postponed due to financial constraints in Indonesia," Dahnil said when asked about the decision to buy used fighters from French company Dassault Aviation.
Dahnil further explained that Indonesia needs to buy the Qatari Mirage 2000-5 to address what he described as a “capacity gap” while waiting for the Rafale fighter jets ordered from France. Indonesia is expected to receive the first batch of Rafale fighter jets in 2026.
A Qatari Mirage 2000-5 aircraft
Defencesecurityasia.com Screenshot
The controversial issue of Indonesia's plan to buy used Mirage 2000-5s from Qatar has sparked heated discussions among political parties preparing for the country's upcoming presidential election. Minister Prabowo is also one of the candidates running to replace President Joko Widodo, whose second term ends in October 2024.
The Qatari Air Force first acquired the Mirage 2000-5 aircraft about 25 years ago, in 1998. However, when announcing the decision to purchase the second-hand aircraft in July 2023, Minister Prabowo asserted that Qatar's 12 used Mirage 2000-5s still had 70% of their flight hours left. "The Mirage 2000-5 fighters have an estimated lifespan of about 15 years in the Indonesian Air Force as they have only used 30% of their total flight hours so far," Prabowo explained.
Fighter jets manufactured by Dassault Aviation typically have a lifespan of 5,000 flight hours, suggesting that the Qatari Air Force has only flown about 1,500 Mirage 2000-5s in 25 years of service, according to Defense Security Asia .
Indonesia has planned to receive nine single-seat and three two-seat Mirage 2000-5 fighters, at an estimated cost of $797 million.
The Indonesian Defense Minister stressed that the purchase of 12 used Mirage 2000-5 fighters is only a temporary measure to ensure high readiness of the country's air force while the existing fighter jets are undergoing maintenance.
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