Indonesia “Commits” To Acquiring F-15EXs
The Indonesian government has signed a memorandum of understanding with Boeing to “finalize” the sale of 24 F-15EXs for the Indonesian Air Force.
The memorandum of understanding was signed on Monday by Air Vice Marshal Yusuf Jauhari, Head of Defense Facilities Agency, Indonesia Ministry of Defense, and Mark Sears, Boeing Fighters vice president and program manager at the St. Louis production facility for the F-15. The signing followed a tour of the F-15 production line by a delegation from Indonesia, led by Indonesian defense minister Prabowo Subianto.
“We are pleased to announce our commitment to procure the critical F-15EX fighter capability for Indonesia,” said Subianto after witnessing the MoU signing. “This state-of-the-art fighter will protect and secure our nation with its advanced capabilities.”
“We have invested years of expertise into developing the F-15EX capabilities. There is no other fighter like the F-15 in the world, and this platform will put Indonesia at the top of air dominance capabilities,” said Sears. “Boeing is ready to support this effort and remains a committed partner to the U.S. government in advancing international security objectives with allies and partners around the world.”
Boeing is offering a variant of the F-15EX known as the F-15IDN to Indonesia in response to Jakarta’s interest in procuring a heavyweight fighter as part of its air force modernization plans. Indonesian procurement efforts for heavyweight fighters were publicly disclosed in December 2021 after plans to procure Russian Su-35s were scrapped, with Indonesian Air Force Chief of Staff Air Chief Marshal Fadjar Prasetyo saying at the time that he had met with Boeing representatives on the possibility of F-15EX procurement. In February 2022, the U.S State Department approved the potential sale of 36 F-15ID Aircraft to Indonesia via the Defense Security Cooperation Agency.
Jakarta has ordered 42 Dassault Rafales to meet the same requirement, with Dassault announcing earlier this month that a contract for the second batch of aircraft in the order is now in effect.