Jakarta. The US has floated a plan to make Indonesia the Asian hub for the Lockheed C-130 Hercules maintenance work, according to Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin.

Speaking to Indonesian lawmakers, Sjafrie spoke candidly of his past interactions with US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Aside from reclarifying the US overflight clearance fiasco, Sjafrie talked of what sort of partnership that Washington had in mind.

“This scheme doesn’t exist in [other] ASEAN countries. He [Hegseth] offered to centralize the entire Asia’s C-130 maintenance work in Indonesia,” Sjafrie said at a meeting at the parliamentary complex on Tuesday.

Sjafrie went on to say that the US would cover the costs and that he had reported the plan to President Prabowo Subianto.  The minister signaled that the center would be located in West Java’s Kertajati airport. Sjafrie said: “We are working on it”, while offering little details on this upcoming center. 

Indonesia had previously ordered five units of the medium-sized airlifter C-130J-30 Super Hercules, with the last delivery already taking place in 2024. Indonesia has also used its C-130 to air-drop aid to the war-battered Gaza. Reports showed that Jakarta welcomed its first C-130 back in 1960. Singapore and the Philippines are some of the Asian operators of the aircraft. American defense giant Lockheed Martin is its developer.

During a visit to the Pentagon last month, Jakarta sealed a major defense cooperation partnership with Washington. The cooperation also revolves around military modernization, including its maintenance, repair, and overhaul support. Hegseth told Sjafrie that the document would "signify the strength and potential of [bilateral] security relationship". The two senior officials had held bilateral talks on the margins of an ASEAN security meeting in Kuala Lumpur last year.

It is unclear whether the Asian hub statement would translate into more C-130 orders. However, Indonesia has allotted Rp 337 trillion (around $19 billion) in defense budget this year. Just earlier this week, Prabowo said ramping up defense was urgent amid today’s uncertain global conditions, alluding to the US-Iran war, as Jakarta received more units of the French-made Rafale fighter jets. 

“We will continue to build our strength. We want to secure our airspace, seas, and land,” Prabowo said.

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