Three Indonesian Air Force F-16 fighter planes forced an Ethiopian Airlines cargo plane to land at Hang Nadim International Airport in Batam, Riau Islands, on Monday, after the plane entered Indonesian airspace without permission.

Batam AirNav general manager Miwan Muhammad Bunay said the F-16s were scrambled out of Roesmin Nurjadin Air Force Base in Pekanbaru, Riau, to intercept the Ethiopian plane.

“We were asked to guide the Ethiopian cargo plane to the Hang Nadim airport in Batam,” Miwan told The Jakarta Post on Monday. “It was forced to land because it did not have clearance to enter Indonesian airspace.”

Miwan said the plane had not been in contact with the flight information region (FIR) in Jakarta, but had communicated with the FIR in Singapore.

“The plane was originally going to be forced to land at Sultan Syarim Kasim airport in Pekanbaru, but because of its large size it landed in Batam this morning,” he said.

Hang Nadim airport general manager Suwarso said the plane had five crew members: one pilot, one co-pilot and three cabin crew members.

“The plane had initially reported to Singapore to ask to land there, but the request was denied by the Indonesian Air Force,” he said.

Tanjungpinang Air Force Base spokesperson Second Lt. Angger Baskara said the plane was being inspected by several agencies, including customs and immigration offices, to determine why it entered Indonesian airspace.

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