Indonesia Orders 11 Eurocopter Panther Helicopters To Re-Kindle Anti-Submarine Unit

Indonesia has ordered 11 Panther helicopters to re-enforce its anti-submarine unit.

"The helicopters would be delivered gradually with four units to arrive by 2017," Navy spokesperson Rear Admiral M Zainuddin was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency Wednesday.

Squadron 100 was once regarded as one of the most powerful military units in the world in the 1960s.It was taken out of service in the late 1980s.

Soon after the arrival of the helicopters, the squadron will be activated, he said, adding that the contract to acquire those helicopters has been approved by government and the producer.

The Eurocopter SA 565 Panther helicopter is designed to carry out a wide range of military operations that include combat assault, fire support, anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, search and rescue and medical evacuation.

Zainuddin said that the Navy is also expecting the arrival of six submarines - three Chang Bogo-class and three Kilo-class. The first three are scheduled to be delivered in 2017.