Banda Aceh, (Antara) - A C-130 Hercules aircraft of the Air Force departed here, Thursday, from the Sultan Iskandar Muda Airbase, Aceh Province, to deliver logistics, including food, blankets, and tents, to the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.
The aid will arrive in Chittagong, Bangladesh, at 5 p.m. local time, Air Force's Civic Mission Commander Marshal Nanang Santoso stated.
"After landing in Bangladesh, the Hercules aircraft will refuel and immediately return to Indonesia in order to transport more aid," Santoso noted.
Two hours after the first flight lands, the second Hercules aircraft is scheduled to arrive in Chittagong at 7 p.m. local time, Santoso remarked.
According to Santoso, the Air Force is coordinating with Ambassador of Indonesia to Bangladesh Rina Soemarno, mainly in terms of flying and landing permits in Bangladesh.
Santoso further explained, the Bangladesh government had granted only two landing slots for the Indonesian aircraft to transport aid. However, the Air Force has readied two other A1335 and A1316 aircraft for carrying out the humanitarian mission to help Rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, the Disaster Mitigation Office (BNPB) has also contacted the local authority to distribute aid to the Rohingya refugees.
"The Bangladesh government will take over the (distribution of) aid once it is received by the embassy. The local authority will then deliver the (aid) package to the refugees," BNPB Disaster Response Director Junjungan Tambunan stated at the Sultan Iskandar Muda Airbase, Aceh Province, on Wednesday.
Following the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Myanmar, thousands of Rohingya Muslims were displaced and had fled to the neighboring country, Bangladesh.
Amid the humanitarian crisis, the Indonesian government has committed to helping the refugees by delivering aid, to not only Myanmar but also Bangladesh.
Today's flight from Indonesia will deliver 20 tons of rice, one ton of sugar, 10 units of emergency tents, seven thousand blankets, 600 family kits, and 10 units of 1,893-liter emergency water tanks.(*)
