Indonesia will build light attack chopter

JAKARTA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's plane company PT Dirgantara Indonesia will develop a light attack helicopter and military cooperation with South Korea, a top executive said here on Thursday.

"We are in cooperation with the Indonesian Army to develop a light attack helicopter that could be used to confront separatist and smugglers," said Budi Santoso, president director of PT Dirgantara Indonesia in a parliamentary hearing. He said that characteristic of the helicopter is different from MI35 that is designed for opened battle in which noise is not important. "The most important element of the light attack helicopter is its low noise while flying. We don't need helicopters like MI35 that its noise could be heard from a distance of 10 kilometers," Santoso said.

He also said that the Defense Ministry and its South Korean counterpart are developing a program named the Korean Fighter Program (KFP). "This is our opportunity to upgrade our skill and to grow new expertise, mainly in engineering," he said.

According to Santoso, general lifetime of a plane is about 20- 30 years.

"However, during the lifetime, we need maybe twice or three times of upgrade on weaponry and avionic system. If we have the expertise, we could upgrade it according to our needs," he said.

source :Xinhua

Royal Malaysian Navy : RM 6 billion allocated for build six NGPV

LUMUT, (Bernama) -- The government has agreed to allocate RM6 billion to build six second generation patrol vessels for the Royal Malaysian Navy, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Saturday.

The construction of the ships will boost the economy while benefiting 632 vendor companies, he told reporters here after a briefing on the project.

"Thus, we will ensure that at least RM2 billion of the allocation will benefit these vendor companies which are strategic partners of Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd," he added.

Ahmad Zahid said that he would himself monitor the progress of the project, due to start next year, and ensure that all concerned benefit from it and that there was no delay in paying the vendors.

He said that Boustead Naval Shipyard had constructed several new generation vessels for the RMN and shown itself to be on par with other ship builders in the world.

Ahmad Zahid also said the Lumut-Bagan Datoh coastal area here has been identified for a world-class shipyard to be developed over the next 10 to 20 years.

He said the defence industry, including shipping, had immense potential in the Asean region and now generated income of US$25 billion a year.

If Malaysia could attract at least 20 per cent of the defence spending, US$5 billion or RM15 billion could be generated by companies in the country, he said.

Ahmad Zahid the government was now trying to attract more defence industry-based projects, including ship building, to the country.

(Bernama)

Latest boundary skirmish cambodia thailand

immage surce :http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/02/07/world/THAILAND/THAILAND-articleInline.jpg

Latest boundary skirmish cambodia thailand

Two soldier died when cambodia and thailand incolved in latest fire exchange. The fire exchange already happened around hindu temple, Preah Vihear.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thai and Cambodian soldiers exchanged fire on a disputed stretch of their border on Sunday, witnesses said, the third flare-up in three days in an ancient feud over territory surrounding a 900-year-old Hindu temple.

The latest fighting occurred despite Thailand's announcement of a cease-fire on Saturday following clashes in the area that killed at least five people on Friday and Saturday.

A witness said about 20 rounds were heard going off in the vicinity of a 4.6-sq-km (two-sq-mile) disputed area around the 11-century Preah Vihear temple, a jungle-clad escarpment claimed by both countries.