Flight safety officers in Batam’s Hang Nadim International Airport have raised concern over a ‘stray’ F-14 or F-16 fighter belonging to Singaporean military, which was seen flying into Indonesian airspace without notice on Feb. 7.
The aircraft was detected only when it had already entered, moving over the Sekupang district to Nipah Island, as Hang Nadim does not have a radar.
Said the head of the airport’s flight safety division Indah Irwansyah to The Jakarta Post, “Singapore is very interested in Nipah while Indonesia continues to maintain it. The fighter was flying low.”
She also said that Singapore military should have contacted Indonesia’s transport ministry of the fighter’s movement, so that they would’ve been able to inform commercial flights of its presence. She also suggested that Hang Nadim install a radar to identify all aircraft flying over the border area. With the radar, flight safety officers will be able to read the aircraft’s squawk code and in turn, recognise its type and flight route.
This ‘invasion’ seems to add to tension already existing between the two Southeast Asian countries from the warship naming scandal. Earlier this week, Indonesia officials also announced their absence from the Singapore Airshow, a decision they say was made by Singapore organisers amidst the disagreement.
Photo: Singapore’s Black Knights practising for the Airshow; TODAY
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