Sanctions…No Problem

Flanker
RMAF Flanker armed with four R-77 and two R-73. It is unclear whether the picture, published by RMAF, of a Flanker operating out of Labuan in 2019.

SHAH ALAM: Sanctions, no problem. The New Straits Times today reported that the sanctions imposed by most Western countries against Russia will have little impact on Malaysia in maintaining its equipment originating from that country.

It quoted Aerospace Technology Systems Corporation Sdn Bhd (ATSC) chief executive officer Lt Col (Rtd) Datuk Mohd Fadzar Suhada as saying that “Any global economic sanction against Russia would have little or no affect in continuing to obtain spares, parts, services and technical input.

Sukhoi Su-30MKM from the 12th Squadron – M52-09 and M52-18. Pioture taken in 2016

CYBERJAYA: Malaysia can overcome all challenges to appropriately maintain Russian defence equipment and armaments.

A leading local defence industry top executive refuted reports that enforcement agencies like the Armed Forces would suffer a backlash, owing to western economic sanctions following the current Russian-Ukraine standoff.

Aerospace Technology Systems Corporation Sdn Bhd (ATSC) chief executive officer Lt Col (Rtd) Datuk Mohd Fadzar Suhada dispelled any notion to that effect.

“Any global economic sanction against Russia would have little or no affect in continuing to obtain spares, parts, services and technical input.

“Unlike some other fighter aircraft, the ones like the Sukhoi Su30-MKM Flankers (in use by the Royal Malaysian Air Force) are fully and readily supported by local industries like us.

“All aspects like the depot-level overhaul of such jets are formulated and regulated through indigenous formulae and mechanisms via smart partnerships between ATSC, the RMAF and other original equipment manufacturers (OEM),” he told The New Straits Times in response to media reports to the contrary.

Sukhoi Su-30MKM M52-18 at Sukhoi Technical Centre at the Gong Kedak airbase in 2016. The centre is run jointly by RMAF and ATSC.

I cannot ascertain the veracity of the statements though I must say that the report seemed to indicate y that ATSC was doing everything in country for the Sukhois in regards to its maintenance and even its SLEP. It also stated that Malaysia could rely on India and China for spares and parts, if needed.

— Malaysian Defence.

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25 Comments

  1. in positive side maybe we can also do the mro work for indonesia flanker fleets since they cant do it in their country

  2. Rock,

    You seriously think they would let us do it? Also they’ve already started deploy level maintenance for their
    Su-27s/Su-30s.

    HAL many years ago announced plans license manufacture critical parts for export. No idea what happened to this plan. About a decade ago the RMAF Chief during a visit to China spoke about the possibility of obtaining spares but are the Chinese allowed to export spares? If not the Russians will not provide us with any support if something goes wrong.

  3. Speaking of that Flankers Slep..How is it going? How many already complete their slep? How about Flankers squadron readiness as of now?

  4. I really hope ATSC is confidently living up to its boast then and not pumping out gas through its arse! Like BNS when launching our 1st LCS in 2017!

  5. RMAF has been using Chinese made parts on the MKM for more than a decade.

    The same local company that supports RMAF, also supplies chinese made parts to TNI-AU.

  6. Gonggok,

    You seem pretty sure, as with many things. You know this for a fact or that this is still the case? Also, do you know for an absolutely fact that the Chinese are,allowed to export those parts and that the Russians Will provide assistance in the event anything goes wrong?

  7. Seems our Sukhois are getting more and more of a hybrid …perhaps along the lines of an Israeli Nesher or Kfir by the day.

  8. It was always that way by design, really. That’s one of the main reasons, they did’nt want to send them to Russia for the SLEP, apart from the airframe and engines, the Russians dont have any more things to offer to us.

  9. Taib,

    From Day One it was a unique variant specified by us [in ways a support nightmare] – the RMAF’s condition for being forced to get something it didn’t want.

  10. gonggok – China basically has localized all items for the flanker platform

    It has had for a long time – no surprises there. The question was really if they are allowed to export the stuff and if the Russians Will provide support if something goes wrong. This wasn’t the case previously.

    gonggok – As for india these are the list of items they are doing/going to do locally

    Like the case with the Fukcrums, Floggers, Fushbeds and Fulcrums; HAL produces a lot of stuff for ve Fkankers locally. About a decade ago it announced that it was seeking permission to license manufacture stuff which would be stored and ready for export within 24 hours after receiving payment. As it stands parts related to the engine, gearbox, landing gear, radar and other things as required,by us are still obtained direct from Russia.

    gonggok – some of these we already buy from china

    I heard this is no longer the case.

  11. “fully and readily supported by local industries like us”
    Yeah right. Sure its his job to sell his business to TUDM & Govt but if we trust local player’s words for it, we’re finished. I’d like to see some track records firstly and the reasons what made Mat Sabu so confidently announce then our MKMs were grounded.

  12. The problem made known by Mat Sabu was not an issue caused by the local industry, it was the BN government that didn’t issue enough funds to maintain the MKM apart from 4 aircraft at that time.

  13. Azlan, “I heard this is no longer the case”

    Maybe i have been out of the loop for a few years but why is it no longer the case? If even TNI-AU buys from the same chinese parts from the malaysian middleman, why suddenly RMAF does not?

    Joe,

    How can you take anything said by a joker like Mat Sabu at face value? When it is said that only 4 MKM operational, it is either RMAF lying to Mat Sabu and he fell for it hook and sinker, or its just Mat Sabu selling a manufactured bad news just for him to artificially solve a problem that is actually not there.

  14. They didn’t hentam because it was again, nothing to shout about. It wasn’t like the MKMs weren’t available for combat missions. Just saying it in public was already enough.

    The organiser of DSA has already said Russia and Belarus are not coming due to the sanctions, while Ukraine decided not to come as they are in a war

  15. gonggok – If even TNI-AU buys from the same chinese parts from the malaysian middleman, why suddenly RMAF does not?
    even TNI-AU buys from the same chinese parts from the malaysian middleman, why suddenly RMAF does not?

    Could be due to several reasons which I can’t be bothered to type here. Too lazy.

    As I questioned twice already, are the Chinese allowed to export parts and will the Russians provide support? Also, don’t assume just because the Indonesians do so; that it would be perfectly sound for us too.

  16. BTW TNI-AU bought the chinese parts from the malaysian seller mainly because those parts are supplied to and used by RMAF first.

  17. “nothing to shout about”
    The defence of our realm was at stake and there was nothing to shout about? PH wouldn’t have gave up that opportunity if they knew how important is that. Alas all politicians are the same, if it doesn’t give them a leg up it is useless for them to parrot.

    @gonggok
    Regardless of my dim viewpoints on him, he spoke in his capacity as MenHan then and while I doubt he was lying, he prolly took that info from TUDM at face value and blurt it to the public without considering the consequences. Regardless of the motives & intentions, the situation didn’t solve itself as the MKMs are still pending their deep SLEP.

  18. ‘Regardless of my dim viewpoints on him, he spoke in his capacity as MenHan then and while I doubt he was lying, he prolly took that info from TUDM at face value and blurt it to the public without considering the consequences’
    Well considered bros … and convincing enough to thoroughly condemn YB Mr Mat Sabu as a veritable idiot par excellence!

  19. Taib – YB Mr Mat Sabu as a veritable idiot par excellence”

    Which in turn raises questions about why the then PM even selected him be Defence Minister when from the onset it was pretty obvious he wasn’t up to the job. A cynic would day that apart fro the move being politically expedient; its also because defence is not and never was a priority.

  20. back on the topic of sanctions.

    Latest news, India is to order 12 more Su-30MKI. No idea how they are going to bypass the current sanctions due to the ukrainan conflict. 100% made in india, plus russian parts already in india?

  21. gonggok -100% made in india, plus russian parts already in india”

    The guess local manufacture using a lot of parts imported from Russia [as has long been done] which may already be in India. India no doubt will come under external pressure from the West but it will shrug it of. There is an interesting Al Jazeera article about why India didn’t strongly take measures over the Ukraine; same reason why it didn’t condemn the invasion of Czechoslovakia and Afganistan and has had very good ties with Russia/Soviet Union.

  22. “why the then PM even selected him be Defence Minister”
    The reason was simple. He had a coalition of 5 parties with 5 heads to fill in positions of power, which of course once the positions of PM, DPM, FinMin, HomeMin was filled the next most powerful position is MenHan which happens to fall to his most smallest party of the lot. Its just a matter of expediency and not to insult a leader of his coalition party by not making him a, say, Minister of Arts & Culture. Being the joker that he is, he would certainly shine in that role but will his party accepts such a lowly position? Of course not!

    But during BN era, nobody considers the role of MenHan as a lower priority. Those who ultimately became PM invariably had stints as MenHan. Its one of those stepping stones for those being groomed to be PM then.

  23. Last week US Congress has approved Egypt to buy F15s, possibly making it the 2nd country after Indonesia to have a combo fleet of F15s and Rafales in usage. Unsurprising as most of the monies paid would come from US military aid to Egypt anyways.

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