Yogyakarta ( WNAM MONITORING): Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Air Force Marshal Mohamad Tonny Harjono has affirmed the Air Force’s combat and fleet readiness to guard the airspace of Indonesia’s new capital Nusantara.
Speaking at the Air Force Academy complex here on Monday, he said that the Air Force is ready to deploy Sukhoi fighter jets from the Hasanuddin Airbase in Makassar, South Sulawesi Province, promptly to counter any potential threats to Nusantara’s airspace.
“If we detect an unidentified aerial object compelling the Air Force to take action or to intercept, we will deploy our fighter jets from Makassar,” he noted.
He said that Nusantara city’s airspace is being monitored by the Air Force’s II Sector Command based in Makassar.
Air force bases in East Kalimantan’s Balikpapan and North Kalimantan’s Tarakan are also ready to provide backup, he added.
He noted that an Air Force unit will be established at Nusantara’s VVIP Airport. This unit will comprise an air squadron, and its officers will be tasked with operating the presidential aircraft.
“There will be a Boeing 737 BBJ (Boeing Business Jet) and Super Puma helicopter for VVIP movement,” he added.
Nusantara’s VVIP Airport is being constructed on 621 hectares of land in Penajam sub-district, North Penajam Paser district, East Kalimantan. The airport will become operational in August 2024 at the earliest.
Harjono said that Air Force Headquarters officials will have offices at Dhomber Air Force Base in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan temporarily if the office building at IKN has not been completed.
