“We will evaluate all [F-16 jets]. This is the first time such an incident has occurred,” Marshall Agus Supriatna was quoting as saying by local newspaper Jakarta Globe.
The incident occurred at 8.15 a.m. local time [01:15 GMT] on Thursday when an F-16 fighter jet was about to take off from Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base in East Jakarta. The fighter is one of 24 used F-16 jets given by the United States under a "grant scheme" to the Indonesian Air Force.
Indonesian military chief Gen. Moeldoko said:
“We will conduct an investigation. The [F-16 that caught fire] was the latest to be delivered from America.”
Deputy Speaker of the Indonesian Parliament Fadli Zon, in his turn, outlined that the grant scheme is a "part of an erroneous policy of the past," adding that Indonesia should completely stop the use of second-hand aircraft.
According to the US grant scheme, Indonesia gets the planes for free but must pay for maintenance as well as for engines and electronics repairs.
