Indonesia wants to divest capital and South Korea's joint research and development of the fifth-gene
According to South Korea’s KBS TV station, the Indonesian President decided on October 21 to re-negotiate the contract with South Korea on the medium-sized fifth-generation aircraft.
According to reports, on October 21, Indonesian Minister of Political, Legal and Security Affairs Wiranto revealed in a meeting with reporters on Friday that the fifth-generation fighter KF-X/IF-X fighter plan jointly developed by Indonesia and South Korea may be renewed. Negotiate. Wiranto revealed: Due to Indonesia’s own economic conditions, Indonesian President Joko Widow has decided to renegotiate the deal to ease Indonesia’s economic burden. Indonesia and South Korea reached an agreement in 2014 to jointly develop next-generation fighter jets by 2026. The entire agreement is estimated to be worth about 7 trillion won. Indonesia agreed to pay 20% of the development costs, but failed to pay during the second half of last year and the first half of this year.
The next-generation fighter plans of South Korea and Indonesia are also known as the KF-X/IF-X fighter project plan. It was first proposed by South Korea’s KAI company in 2001. The initial goal was to develop a performance surpassing "Rafale" and "Typhoon". "The twin-engine stealth fighter. In 2013, the project was suspended by then President Park Geun-hye due to a lack of R&D funds. Later in 2014, Indonesia expressed its willingness to assume 20% of the project’s R&D funds before the KF-X/IF-X fighter project was restarted. However, South Korea’s lack of fighter jet R&D experience and related technology accumulation has led to projects that rely more on foreign suppliers. For example, the Korea Defense Development Agency has selected Israel’s Elta Systems to develop airborne active phased array radars for the aircraft. Cobham was selected to provide weapon pylons and launch equipment for the aircraft. In terms of engine selection, KF-X can choose from F414 in the United States, EJ2000 and M88 series in Europe.
On February 8, 2017, Indonesia and South Korea publicly announced that they will establish a joint management office for the KF-X/IF-X fighter jet program. And Indonesia has sent 74 personnel to South Korea to participate in project management. The project design is expected to be completed in 2018, and the prototype is scheduled to make its first flight in 2021 or 2022. However, it seems that South Korea's KF-X/IF-X fighter jet project may come to a halt due to Indonesia's divestment.