Regarding The Indonesian National Team Aircraft Carter, PSSI: Not Using APBN Funds

Zainudin Amali, Deputy Chairman of PSSI, clarified the question of aircraft charters for the Indonesian national team (doc. PSSI).

PSSI through the Deputy General Chair, Zainudin Amali, clarified the costs used by the Indonesian national team for aircraft charters. He emphasized that the facility does not use APBN funds (State Revenue and Expenditure Budget).

Rumors of the Garuda Squad being chartered by aircraft related to the agenda of Shin Tae-yong's team to navigate the Third Round of the 2026 Asian Zone World Cup Qualifiers.

For the convenience of the trip, it was decided that the players and officials would use charter planes.

"So, I want to explain and clarify that it is not true that we lease non-commercial aircraft (catter) even though it is really a necessity (Indonesian national team)," said Zainudin Amali, quoted on Tuesday, September 6, 2024.

Nevertheless, Zainudin Amali did not deny that some of the Indonesian national team's accommodation used APBN funds that had been agreed upon by PSSI, Kemenpora, and the Ministry of Finance.

"So, the General Chairperson (Erick Thohir) emphasized that as much as possible the APBN (is an activity) that has been agreed upon by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Ministry of Finance, and PSSI," said the former Menpora.

Zainudin Amali then detailed that the funds used to rent the plane came from federation funds and sponsors.

"We know ourselves, during that period (airplane charter) we must use the state budget," he said.

Meanwhile, PSSI previously stated the intention of chartering the aircraft. You see, the journey of the Indonesian national team in the 2026 World Cup Qualification is quite tiring.

One of the highlights of the away match against Bahrain and China in October 2024. Indonesia had to visit Bahrain's headquarters first and then fly directly to China.

The trip took 30 hours. Not to mention the stadium in China which has a distance of 633 kilometers.

If you use land vehicles such as buses, a trip from Beijing to Qingdao takes 6.5 hours, while using a plane is only 1.5 hours.

The effectiveness of the trip is PSSI's consideration. You see, they don't want Garuda's squad players to be tired given the tight schedule. The distance between fighting Bahrain and China was only five days.