Air Force Chief Assures no Jet Fighters use Illegal Spare Parts

Jakarta (Antara) - Air Force Chief of Staff Marshal Agus Supriatna gave the assurance that no Indonesian Air Force (TNI AU) jet fighters use fake spare parts. \"There are no illegal spare parts for jet fighters. Only small planes likely use them,\" Supriatna said at the TNI AU Headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Thursday. Supriatna said the TNI AU did not likely use illegal spare parts for its jet fighters. He was responding to the TNI AU F-16 aircraft which failed to take off at the Halim Perdana Kusuma Air Force Base in East Jakarta earlier in the day. With proper and well-scheduled maintenance, F-16 Fighting Falcon would remain strong until it was 30 years old, he said. \"For example, a plane which was made in 1989 is still in good condition because it has well-scheduled maintenance,\" he said. He said the TNI AU would review its contract with the F-16 jet fighter supplier to see if they provided guarantee in case of damage to the F-16 planes. \"We will review the contract. If they provide guarantee, it (the ill-fated F-16 aircraft) will be replaced. Therefore, we must investigate the accident soon so we can study the result of the investigation,\" he said. The F-16 failed to take off and caught fire at the Halim Perdana Kusuma Air Force Base on Thursday at 08.10 a.m.. The pilot of the ill-fated aircraft, identified as Lieutenant Colonel Firman Dwi Cahyono survived the accident. Dwi Cahyono who is also the commander of the Roesmin Noerjadin Air Force Base\'s 16 Air Squadron in Pekanbaru, Riau province, ejected from the aircraft as the accident occurred. He has clocked over two thousand flight hours on the F-16 Fighting Falcon. (*) Reported by Alviansyah Pasaribu