U

S defense giant Lockheed Martin is ready to provide Indonesia with an offset scheme, in which Indonesia would build components, should the country decide to buy the latest variant of the venerable F-16 Fighting Falcon light jet fighter.

The pledge was made by Lockheed'€™s head of business development for F-16, Randy Howard, during a media event on Wednesday.

He said the company was ready to discuss with Indonesian stakeholders the requirements related to the offset scheme. '€œWe have fulfilled our offset commitment when Indonesia first bought the F-16,'€ he told journalists.

Indonesia first bought 12 units of F-16 A/B Block 15 OCU aircraft in 1989 with an offset scheme of 35 percent of the total purchase value.

Lockheed presented a cockpit simulator for members of the media to try the latest technologies being installed in the F-16V (Viper).

The US Ambassador to Jakarta Robert O. Blake, Jr. attended the event and said both countries had strong and growing relations, including strong defense ties.

'€œThe US military very much values the growing cooperation with the TNI,'€ he said.

Blake added that the US was helping Indonesia to modernize its military through training and equipment, including aircraft. '€œIndonesia has a very long tradition of flying the F-16,'€ he said, adding that he was proud to have the F-16 V.

The ambassador added that the latest variant of F-16, which no longer has the Block number system, was well suited to Indonesia as it could also track maritime targets.

'€œThe radar can pick up ships and prevent illegal fishing and other incursions,'€ he said.

Another reason to pick the F-16, Blake said, was because it had 30 percent lower operating costs when compared to its competitors.

Howard said currently there were a number of F-16 operators upgrading their F-16 Block 50/52 into the Viper standard but Indonesia would be the first country to operate brand new F-16Vs if it chose to.

When asked why Lockheed Martin was offering the Viper to Indonesia, Howard said because there was a need to replace older aircraft.

He was referring to Indonesia'€™s plan to replace the aging, American-made Northrop F-5 E/F Tiger II planes operated by the 14th Squadron, based at the Iswahjudi Air Force Base in Madiun, East Java.

Other than the F-16, another light, single-engine contender is the Swedish-made Saab JAS39 Gripen.

Three other contenders are heavy, dual engine jet fighters: the Eurofighter Typhoon, made by a consortium consisting of Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK; the French-made Dassault Rafale; and the Russian-made Sukhoi Su-35.

Each contender has offered a significant industrial participation scheme to sweeten the deal.

Howard said it would take between 30 and 36 months for first delivery once an agreement was reached.