YAB PM, sempurnakan upacara Handover Sukhoi SU-30MKM M52-11 sebaik sahaja selepas upacara perasmian pagi tadi. Ia merupakan pesawat Sukhoi pertama yang menjalani Program Penyelenggaraan & Pemanjangan Jangka Hayat di bawah syarikat ATSC.
This is very progressive steps taken by RMAF and MINDEF to solve outstanding problem of grounded fighters.
Only last year news of the problem been highlighted and now parts of the solution have been addressed.
Congratulation RMAF
Russia Blames Malaysia For Not Following Proper Maintenance Schedule For Sukhoi Aircraft
September 14, 2018
The Russian government has denied claims that Malaysian Sukhoi fighter jets are difficult to maintain, stating that Kuala Lumpur should follow proper maintenance schedule so that the planes are kept “in the right condition to serve their goals”.
“In India, for example, almost 300 of Su-30 and MiG-29 multipurpose fighter jets constitute the mainstay of the country’s air force capabilities,” the Russian embassy in KL was quoted as saying by Free Malaysia Today, in response to a report by FMT that Russian-made jets were expensive to maintain due to bureaucracy and lack of transparency on the Russian side.
According to the report, a high-ranking Malaysian official said the Russian way of doing business was not as “open or transparent” as that of other Western nations, adding that there were details not revealed to Malaysia when the jets were sold.
However, Russia dismissed the claims stating that the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) itself had cited a lack of government funding as the reason for the problems faced by Malaysia’s fleet of Sukhoi jets.
It said the failure to adequately fund the maintenance of the fleet could have been avoided “if there was interest in keeping the Sukhoi fighter jets in service”.
“Both Russian and foreign military experts many times before admitted that Russia’s military aircraft are one of the cheapest in the world in terms of price and maintenance, and at the same time provide excellent performance in fulfilling operational missions,” it added.
The RMAF purchased the jet fighters in 2003 as part of a US$900 million (S$1.23 billion) contract. At the time, the Malaysian government was also offered by Boeing to purchase its F/A-18E/F Super Hornets. The offer was declined and 18 Su-30MKM jets were purchased instead.
What's the Defence Ministry's priority
Considering the minister’s statements on Sukhois and MiGs, is it the Multi-Role Combat Aircraft or the Maritime Patrol Aircraft or both?
DEFENCE Minister Mohamad Sabu caused quite a stir when he said in the Dewan Rakyat that Malaysia’s land, naval and air defence assets ranked among the lowest of Southeast Asian countries.
Citing interruptions to defence allocations, Mohamad said it was difficult for the ministry to carry out projects and necessary maintenance of assets. He gave the example of the allocation for the maintenance of the Sukhoi SU-30MKM aircraft, the Royal Malaysian Air Force’s most capable fighter, saying that the armed forces had requested an allocation of RM1.8 billion but was given RM700 million less by the previous administration.
The minister had previously caused concern when he stated that of the eight SU-30MKM Flankers and 10 remaining MiG-29N Fulcrum jets operated by the RMAF, only four Flankers were “able to fly well”. Perhaps, it was a misunderstanding of sorts when he said the rest of the aircraft were being repaired, as the other four Flankers are actually undergoing scheduled maintenance as part of the 10-year service cycle, while it’s a well-known fact that the RMAF Fulcrums have long been taken out of service.
Long before they were to be decommissioned, the government had begun planning replacements for the Fulcrums. That was when the Barisan Nasional government came up with the Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) replacement programme. The RMAF was tasked with analysing various MRCA candidates and the field was eventually narrowed down to four — the Eurofighter Typhoon, the Saab Gripen, the French-made Rafale and the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.
Those familiar with the RMAF can guess that the top brass wanted the Super Hornet, as the air force already operates the F/A-18D Hornet. But dealing with the United States is not something easy as all defence assets sold to other countries are kept track of by the US Congress, right down to every cannon, shell, or missile fired in training.
The field was further narrowed down to the Typhoon and the Rafale. Though details of the deals offered by the companies were kept close to the collective chest of all those involved, strong rumours persisted that the deal for the Typhoon would cost quite a bit more than the Rafale, though the package being offered was more comprehensive.
So the toss-up was whether the country wanted to spend more for more, or whether it wanted to spend less for less. But one other factor was said to have been in play — one deal offered a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) centre being set up while the other would see an assembly line begun here. Would an MRO be better for Malaysia in the long term, or an assembly line? Both, of course, came complete with a transfer of technology, one of the basic needs in any deal foreign companies need to include if they intend to offer anything to Malaysia.
But the government back then soon decided that the MRCA programme should be put on the backburner, in favour of the purchase of Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA). There was some consternation, considering everyone knew the Fulcrums would soon be put out to pasture, something which could not be delayed.
True, given Malaysia’s borders were largely maritime, there was a need for MPAs with equipment which could scour the oceans and coastal areas. This was also a long-standing wish of the armed forces. But the wish was for both the MRCA replacement and the MPA procurement programmes to be carried out as close to simultaneously as possible.
Mohamad, in Parliament, had mentioned the MPAs and included information on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), some of which are being developed here. So it is obvious that the minister has recognised that the MPAs are important, too, and is not just focused on jets.
Several questions remain, though. Considering his statements on the Sukhois and the MiGs, is the priority now the MRCA programme? Or will the MPA procurement programme be given equal priority? Considering the present government has said the previous government had left the country deeply in debt, will the amount allocated to defence spending be adequate to focus on even one of the programmes, let alone both? And, what of the assets for the two other services within the armed forces, the army and the Royal Malaysian Navy?
Mat Sabu, as the minister is fondly called, certainly has his work cut out for him. And he can expect a flurry of visits from Eurofighter, Rafale, Saab, Leonardo and other defence companies aiming to sell us their aircraft and various other defence equipment.
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