Jakarta –
Chairman of the Indonesia National Air Carrier Association (INACA) Denon Prawiraatmadja said the Ministry of Industry continues to encourage Indonesia to produce its own spare parts. But unfortunately, this step is still hampered by bureaucracy which makes it difficult so that imports must still be carried out.
“But until now there are still many (local) spare parts that are subject to a limited ban. For example, in Malaysia, there is a limited ban on spare parts of 15%. Meanwhile, Indonesia still has 49%. So if you only have 3 bolts, you have to import them,” said Denon, in the Coordination Meeting. INACA in East Jakarta, Friday (3/3/2013).
“That’s just administration is long. If 1 small plane is fine, but if 10-20 planes, eventually there has to be a department that takes care of the bureaucracy,” he continued.
As a result of this provision, airlines have to dig deeper into their pockets to deal with administrative issues through the establishment of a special bureaucratic department. In fact, the use of domestic spare parts can cut the import budget.
In addition, the current drop in the rupiah exchange rate against the US dollar and euro has also affected the prices of imported operational components, including spare parts. Currently, the rupiah exchange rate against the US dollar has exceeded Rp. 15,000/US$.
“Our operational expenses are in foreign currency. 6 years ago it was Rp. 13,000/US$, it was running low. But now it is close to Rp. 16,000/US$,” said Denon.
Therefore, according to him, it is not surprising that players in the aviation industry face a number of problems in managing their business, especially in pursuit of the minimum target traffic.
“So, in my opinion, it makes sense that all players will have problems managing their business, chasing a minimum target traffic. Don’t let it become an unhealthy industry that will hit the consumers,” he added.
On the other hand, according to him, the policy of prohibiting spare parts was born because both the government and business actors have not succeeded in finding the best solution to solve this problem. Therefore, Denon hopes that in the future his party can discuss with stakeholders and provide strategic inputs.
“If all stakeholders can synergize, focus on how to improve Indonesia’s economy with strong fundamentals, of course Indonesia’s 2045 ambition to become a world ruler will make more sense,” he concluded.
(hns/hns)
