Indonesia appears to be edging closer to the acquisition of 42 Chengdu J-10C fighters from China.
In a brief 15 October interaction with journalists, defence minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin was asked about the status of the possible fighter deal. Replying in Indonesian, he said that the J-10 “will fly in Jakarta soon”.
In a 16 October report following the Sjamsoeddin remarks, official news agency Antara quoted a spokesman of the armed forces headquarters as saying that the final decision on whether to buy the jets has been moved to the defence ministry.
“The acquisition of the Chengdu J-10 fighter jet is part of the defence policy under the authority and responsibility of the Ministry of Defence,” says Major General Freddy Aarianzah.
Jakarta’s interest in the Chinese fighter has been swirling for months, following remarks by air force chief of staff in May that the single-engined Chinese type was under consideration.
If Jakarta obtains the J-10C – some reports suggest that it could get an earlier variant, or even aircraft that were used by the People’s Liberation Army Air Force – it would be the first sale of the J-10C in Southeast Asia and a strategic coup for Beijing.
The deal could also come at the expense of other fighter types that were under consideration. Jakarta is also considering the acquisition of additional Dassault Aviation Rafales beyond its current orders for 42 examples and is a junior partner in the Korea Aerospace Industries KF-21.
In August 2023 Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto – then serving as the country’s defence minister – signed a memorandum of understanding with Boeing for 24 F-15EX fighters, to be obtained under the US government’s Foreign Military Sales process. The possibility of this sale going through, however, appears remote.
July also saw Jakarta signed an agreement for 48 Turkish Aerospace Kaan fighters. The aircraft is still in the early stages of development with Indonesia to recieve the jets in 10 years.
Prabowo underlined his close ties to China on 3 September, when he viewed a parade by China’s military to commemorate the end of the Second World War. During the event he sat with the authoritarian rulers of China, North Korea, and Russia: Xi Jinping, Kim Jong Un, and Vladimir Putin.
According to FlightGlobal’s 2025 World Air Forces directory, the Indonesian air force combat fleet includes 25 Lockheed Martin F-16s, 21 BAE Systems Hawk 209s, 16 Sukhoi Su-27/30s, and 13 Embraer EMB-314 Super Tucano light attack aircraft.
