Foreign Aircraft Forced to Land in Kupang

Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara (Antara) - Indonesian air force aircraft have forced a foreign aircraft from Saudi Arabia to land at the El Tari Adi Sucipto Air Force Base in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, on Monday. Colonel Andi Wijaya, the commander of the air force base, informed newsmen that the Saudi aircraft had been forced to land as it did not have the necessary documentation and approval to enter Indonesian airspace. Two Sukhoi jets from Makassar, South Sulawesi, were sent to force the Saudi aircraft to land, he stated on the sidelines of the interrogation of the Saudi aircraft crew. He remarked that the Saudi aircraft was detected on the radar in Makassar and was immediately chased down by two Sukhoi jets at around 2:30 p.m. Central Indonesia Time. The two Sukhoi jets intercepted the Saudi aircraft at a distance of 82 miles or 150 kilometers from Kupang or around 60 degrees within Kupang, he reported. "The plane was then escorted to Kupang. The plane has not reached the Indonesia-Australia border," he added. The Gulfstream aircraft, piloted by Waleed Abdul Azis, is now detained at the El Tari Airport awaiting the conclusion of interrogation, Andi Wijaya noted. (*) Reporting by Bernadus Tokan