KSAU: Indonesian Air Force Joins IKN Air Defense Study

KSAU Marshal TNI Fadjar Prasetyo (center)/ANTARA/Genta Tenri Mawangi.

JAKARTA - Air Force Chief of Staff (KSAU) Marshal TNI Fadjar Prasetyo conveyed that the Indonesian Air Force plans to participate in studying air defense in the capital city of Nusantara (IKN) as well as studying the results of studies made by other institutions.

From this study, the Indonesian Air Force proposed to the government regarding defense equipment and adequate technology for air defense at IKN.

"In the future, we are also making studies, and we are also studying studies made by other institutions, and we also continue to communicate with the Ministry of Defense, providing input like what is approximately suitable for air defense at IKN, because it also concerns the budget, technology (what is suitable) for 20 years, 30 years in the future, what is it like," said KSAU as reported by ANTARA, Wednesday, May 31.

From several proposals submitted by the Indonesian Air Force to the Ministry of Defense, one of them is related to the use of defense equipment and domestically made technology.

"Of course, our input also involves domestic products, because we have to be more independent there," said Kasau.

Chairman of the Indonesian Air Power Study Center who is also the former Air Force Chief of Staff Marshal TNI (Ret.) Chappe Hakim last week (25/5) highlighted the vulnerability of the Capital City of the Archipelago (IKN), especially in terms of waters and airspace.

Chappe explained that the area of the capital city of the archipelago in East Kalimantan is located in the Sea Lane of the Indonesian Archipelago (ALKI) II which is open waters as regulated and protected in the 1982 United Nations Convention on Marine Law (UNCLOS).

However, Chappe explained that there is still debate (dispute) in understanding the openness of territorial waters regulated by UNCLOS with the sovereignty of the airspace of a country agreed by the countries in the 1944 Chicago Convention.

"IKN is close to the ALKI in the Indonesian archipelagic sea channel, and when we talk about ALKI we talk about international air law, international law of the sea, and there is still a dispute there. UNCLOS gives our recognition as an archipelagic country with one reward, the requirements, we have to provide an innovation passage. We have to give a free pass. That's marine law," said Huky Hakim.

However, international air law, as agreed in the 1944 Chicago Convention, does not recognize free airspace.

He explained that the problem arose because the incent passage (free and open waters) regulated by UNCLOS also facilitated aircraft transported by ships to fly and pass.

"International air law does not recognize that. International air law does not recognize incent passage, does not recognize free passage. That is why IKN's vulnerability will increase with the Indonesian archipelagic sea channel, which is ALKI II," said Chappe Hakim.

He assessed that the vulnerability of IKN air space increased when there was a threat of illegal flights / flights without permission, for example, passing from the Malacca Strait area.

"It is difficult for us to detect because in the Malacca Strait region, our sovereign territory, its management is delegated to other countries for 25 years, and (it can) be extended," he said.

Indonesia in early 2022 took over some of the air space services (FIR) in the Riau Islands and Natuna which were previously managed by the Singapore Aviation Navigation Authority starting from an altitude of 37,000 feet and above.

However, Singapore is still managing and using Indonesian airspace when the plane takes off from Singapore airport because flight services (PJP) at an altitude of 0-37,000 feet are delegated to Singapore for the next 25 years and can be extended.

Since 1946, parts of the West Indonesia FIR, namely in the Riau Islands, Tanjungpinang, and Natuna, have been under Singapore's control. This condition makes Indonesian aircraft have to report to Singapore authorities if they want to pass through the area.