Markus Junianto Sihaloho & Camelia Pasandaran – Saturday's crash of a Merpati Nusantara Airlines flight in Papua in which all 25 aboard were killed has raised questions about the murky purchase of the aircraft and its lack of certification by US authorities.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Thursday ordered an inspection of all the remaining Chinese-made MA-60s in the country and ordered ministers to explain the deal by state-owned Merpati to purchase 15 of them.
Former Vice President Jusuf Kalla had called for a broader probe into the purchase, and the House of Representatives finance commission announced on Thursday that it was planning to establish a committee to investigate possible mismanagement at the carrier.
On Friday, Tjahjo Kumolo, secretary general of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said he supported the probe, adding that all ministers involved in the procurement of the planes should be summoned for questioning.
Priyo Budi Santoso, the House deputy speaker from the Golkar Party, said the investigation would help the country improve its air transportation safety. "We will support the step to investigate the case, whether it is through a special commission or through joint commission," Priyo said.
Price problems
Under the terms of the 2006 contract signed by Merpati and Xian Industrial Aircraft Corp., the maker of the MA-60s, each plane was priced at $14.1 million. However, airlines in the Philippines, Ghana and Nepal had bought the same type of aircraft for only $11 million each.
The deal was financed by 1.8 billion yuan ($227 million) from the China Import Export Bank, repayable over 15 years with annual interest of 2.5 percent. Merpati took delivery of the first two planes in mid-2007. But after finding cracks in the fastener of the vertical stabilizer and facing worsening finances, it considered canceling the purchase.
The move reportedly prompted China to retaliate by halting a loan for an electricity development project in Indonesia. In response, Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu was sent to China to renegotiate the plane purchase agreement.
Mari has since declined to comment on the issue, insisting that it should not be turned into "polemics." "We need to wait for the results of the ongoing investigation," she said on Thursday. "All will be explained in time."
Presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha, said on Wednesday that, at the time of the deal, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was aware of the purchase but was not familiar with the details.
No certification
In addition to the high price and mechanical flaws, the deal was also dogged by concerns that the MA-60s were not certified by the US Federal Aviation Administration, whose guidelines, though not mandatory in Indonesia, are nonetheless the de facto standard for airlines.
Former President B.J. Habibie, an aerospace engineer by training and former head of state aircraft manufacturer Dirgantara Indonesia, said all airplanes should be FAA-certified. But this was dismissed by Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi, the former fisheries minister.
"Why should we use American [standards] when we could use our own?" he said. "Even Europe doesn't use them. They don't like American standards. Our standards already fulfill [requirements set by] the International Civil Aviation Organization."
Freddy said that after assessing the MA-60, the plane was found to exceed the DI-built CN-235, which is FAA-certified, in some respects.
"We have the capacity and equipment to issue certification," Freddy said. "So in 2006 we issued it because we considered it to have no technical problems. Why should we let Indonesia be ruled by America when we have strong qualifications? We don't need to go to America for that."
MA-60 still in flight
In spite of the crash and the revelations about the inflated price and lack of certification, which prompted the House to call for all MA-60s operating in the country to the grounded, the government has insisted the planes will stay in the air.
"The Transportation Ministry is now conducting research and investigating [the issue]," said Mustafa Abubakar, the state-owned enterprises minister. "The results will be used for us to decide whether the airplanes will be grounded or not."
Merpati operates 12 of the aircraft and is set to take delivery of another two. The carrier is struggling with trillions of rupiah in debt and disputes with its workers. It underwent a restructuring in 2008 and 2009, which was when the issue of the high price paid for the MA-60s was first raised by auditors.
Aris Munandar, a representative of the Merpati workers' union, said the crash was a reflection of the company's ailing financial condition. Merpati is the only domestic airline that uses the MA-60.