Indonesia AF

Tentara Nasional Indonesia - Angkatan Udara
Indonesian Air Force

Bases

Badges

Wing 300 Wing 3 Squadron 14 Squadron 14 on aircrafts

History

The Indonesian Air Force was equipped till beginninning of 1970's mainly with Soviet block fighters, but a change in government policies towards USA brought an influx of Western equipment.
The sale of 12 Northrop F-5E and 4 Northrop F-5E was notified to the Congress in February 1978 at a cost of USD 125m.

Four single-seaters and 2 two-seaters, arrived from McClellan AFB at Madiun-Iswahyudi AB (main Indonesian fighter base) on 21-04-80 on on board a Lockheed C-5A; AIM-9P2 Sidewinders were also supplied at an unknown date (prior to 1986).

Photo: Northrop
Line-up in USA of Northrop F-5E TS-505, TS-510, F-5F TL-514 next to the RF-5E prototype 11420 in 1979.

The aircrafts were to replace 18 former Australian CA-27 Sabres equipping Skuadron Udara 14, Wing 300, at Iswahyudi AB; the US government placed restrictions regarding the use of these aircrafts: they where not to be used in former Portuguese colony East Timor, now part of Indonesia, where a guerrilla war was taking place.

      Northrop F-5E TS-01510 with tail markings of 300th Wing, badge of 14th Squadron and Sidewinders
    seen at Jakarta-Kemaroyan AB on 23-06-86.                                                   Photo: Unknown

First loss of an Northrop F-5E happened on 24-10-86, when a pilot killed in a training sortie in Eastern Java. In the meantime another 2 F-5Es are known to have been lost in accidents.

An attempt to buy 4 surplus Jordanian Northrop F-5E at a cost of USD 25m was vetoed by the US Government in 1993 due to Indonesian human-rights violations on Timor issue.

Beginning in the early '90s a program, called MACAN (Modernisation of Avionics Capabilities for Armament and Navigation) was established to improve the air combat and ground attack capability, plus to enable the planes to act as an lead-in trainer for the F-16s received starting from December 1989; SABCA of Belgium, as systems integrator, was awarded in March 1995 a contract to upgrade 8 single-seaters and 4 two-seaters at a cost of USD 40m. The contract included installation of new avionics, offering commonality with local F-16s and Hawk 109/209, rewiring, structural repairs on at least one aircraft and spares package over four years. Upgrade of the fighter's radar APG-59(V)3 to (V)5 standard was completed in a separate program.

Two prototypes, F-5E TS-0501 and F-5F TS-0516 arrived SABCA's base at Gosseliers on 31-05-95 for modification; test flying started only in September 1997 as the program run six months behind schedule due to difficulties with suppliers and the condition of the two airframes.

Modified aircrafts were returned to Indonesia in February 1999. Upgrading of the remaining aircrafts was to be at Iswahyudi AB, in batches of no more than three at a time, SABCA to supply modification kits, procedures and 3 technicians to assist work, expected to last up to 5 months to complete, in batches of no more than 3 Tigers at a time.

Northrop F-5E TS-0501 at Gosseliers during armament trials in May 1998 after conversion
to MACAN standard. Photo: unknown

Northrop F-5s were rotated during the years throughout the county to familiarize pilots with the 5'100 kms long archipelago, but in 1999 and 2000 three F-5Es were based at Kupang-El Tari AB (West Timor), to be used for air defence of the border area with East Timor; MACAN modified aircrafts flew in the lead with non upgraded F-5E as wingman (not all were modified at the time) in order to make use of the better systems.

Continous friction with the USA regarding military operations in East Timor, including the use fo Northrop F-5s, led in 1999 to a full embargo of military material. This had very serious consequences to the operation of the Air Force due to shortage of spare parts, which had to be bought from third parties, and, regarding the upgrade of the Tigers, of maintenance/repairs and acquisition of new components. It seems that 7 F-5E and 4 F-5F have been upgraded, work on the missing single-seater (TS-0510) having been stopped while being in the USA. One source mentions that upgrade was completed by 2001.

Northrop F-5E TS-0502 and F-5F TS-0516 at Madun-Isfahyuidi on 27-04-00, both upgraded to
MACAN standard, with badge of the 3rd Wing. Note brighter than original camouflage, smaller
stencilling and red last two of serial on nose.
Photos:Sergio Bottaro

As part of a reorganisation Wing 3 was established on May 5, 2000 at Iswahyudi with 14 Squadron (F-5E/F), 3 Squadron (F-16A/B), Squadron 15 (Hawk Mk53), after Wing 300 had been disbanded on 01-04-85 and all Squadrons placed directly under control of two operational Commands, Komando Operasi Angkatan Udara 1 (for the Western part of Indonesia) and Komando Operasi Angkatan Udara 2 (for the Eastern part of Indonesia).

Indipencence of East Timor in 2002 and improved relations with the USA brought an end to the military materials embargo in February 2006; only 6 F-5s were operational at the time, one additional F-5E (serial TS-0510) was held in the USA, sent to Northrop in 1999 for repairs and wasn't anymore operational. This has been returned to Iswahyudi AB beginning of 2006, to be used as source for spare parts.

Jordan offered a grant of F-5s in December 2005, but the offer was not accepted as the Air Force preferred to finance acquisition of later generation Sukhoi Su-27SKM and Su-30MK2 fighters for its Skuadron Udara 11.

A replacement aircraft for the Northrop F-5 is in the wishes list of the Indonesian AF at present in the, together with replacements of BAe Hawk Mk53 trainer and North American OV-10F Bronco COIN aircraft, the last one being the most urgent and the F-5 in the last position.

Operations
Northrop's Tigers participated to several national and combined with neighbouring countries exercises as well as alarm operations. Some of them are listed hereunder.

An Air Combat

Manoevring Range, developed, together with Singapore, was established at Pekan Baru (Sumatra ) for air-to-air and air-to-ground in during 1980, initially utilising CA-27 Sabre and Hunters of the two countries and, from 1986 in excercise Elang Indopura IV/86, F-5s. The biennally held excercise involved, apart from helicopters and transport aircrafts, Indonesian Northrop F-5s and Singaporean ones, initially F-5E, later upgraded F-5S.
The latest excercise, Elang Indopura XIV/2006, was held between 03 and 22 July 2006, divided in Phase 1 as Command Post Excercise at Paya Lebar AB (Singapore), Phase 2 as Air Manoeuvre Excercise at Iswahyudi AB with of 6 Indonesian F-5Es and deployment of 6 Singaporean F-5S.

An interception on alarm took place on 26-04-06 when 2 F-5E based at Kupang AB intercepted about 80 miles form Kupang 4 Australian F-18C and 1 B.707 tanker en route from Darwin (Australia) to Paya Lebar AB (Singapore). After initial radio contact problems it was cleared that the Australian aircrafts had obtained prior clearance to overfly Indonesian air space.

"Air Power Show 2007" exercise, to
show Air Force capabilities, was held
on Belitung Island (Sumatra) 18-11-07
with the participation of 3 F-5Es,
2 F-16A, 4 Hawk 109/209 destroying
dummy targets.

Photo: Indonesian AF

The discovery beginning May 2009 of a number of unknown fighter aircrafts flying near Rote Island by a radar station near Kupang (Timor Island) prompted routine air patrols by four Northrop F-5E along the Indonesia-Australia border, but no contact has taken place till now.
The distance between the island and Australia is less than 90 miles.

Continous tension with Malaysia brought during 2009 the basing of some Tigers at Balikpapan AB (East Borneo); a ground controlled interception exercise, called "Cakra-B/09", was held between April 6th and 14th 2009 to improve readiness, with the participation of 5 Northrop F-5. These aircrafts were supported by General Dynamics F-16 at the same base and 2 Sukhoi Su-27 and 2 Sukhoi Su-30 based at Makasar (also in East Borneo, but farther away from the border).