Scrap the Black Hawk plans, King tells Mindef
MERSING: His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, has told the Defence Ministry not to repeat mistakes in the procurement of military assets, particularly used aircraft with questionable safety.
His Majesty said the experience in purchasing used A-4 Skyhawk aircraft should serve as a lesson.
'Do not repeat the past mistakes, like when we bought second-hand Skyhawks ... are we going to put our pilots in 'flying coffins'?
'I believe all this happened because the Defence Ministry is full of agents or ex-generals turned salesmen, with even textile traders trying to sell drones,' said Sultan Ibrahim at the 60th Anniversary Parade of Rejimen Gerak Khas (RGK) at Kem Iskandar here yesterday.
Also present were the Regent of Johor Tunku Mahkota Ismail and Tunku Putera Johor Tunku Abu Bakar Sultan Ibrahim.
The Bernama report also stated that Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, Malaysian Armed Forces chief Jen Tan Sri Mohd Nizam Jaffar, and Army chief Jen Tan Sri Muhammad Hafizuddeain Jantan, were in attendance as well.
The parade featured five detachments comprising 18 officers and 173 personnel from the 11th Special Service Regiment, the 21st Commando Regiment, the 22nd Commando Regiment, the Combined Unit and the Army Special Warfare Training Centre.
Since its formation in 1965, the regiment has evolved from a small unit into a modern special forces outfit.
Developed by McDonnell-Douglas (now part of Boeing), the Skyhawk was closely associated with the Royal Malaysian Air Force, which acquired 80 units from the United States in 1982 at US$1mil each, before retiring the fleet due to high accident rates.
In the same vein, Sultan Ibrahim, who is also Colonel Commandant of Gerup Gerak Khas, also advised the Defence Minister to cancel the proposed acquisition of refurbished Black Hawk helicopters that are over 30 years old, out of concern the same mistake would be repeated.
The King emphasised that all parties involved in procurement must ensure evaluations are conducted transparently and based on actual need, and not merely on the recommendation of agents or vested interests.
'Do not waste time buying nonsense that does not fit the needs of the military. If you don't know the price, ask me first.
'Five years ago, I pointed out the purchase of rigid raiding craft for the commandos at RM5mil, when I could have sourced a better boat for under RM2mil.
'Recently, I heard there was a proposal to buy a similar boat but in a larger size, at nearly RM10mil.
'This makes no sense and must be carefully reviewed,' Sultan Ibrahim said, adding that if procurement is done at 'middlemen prices', then no government allocation will ever be enough.
'Therefore, do not try to fool me. If you do not want to heed my advice, I will not speak up again,' said His Majesty.
Meanwhile, in a Facebook post, Khaled said his ministry will continue to prioritise the readiness of the armed forces in line with His Majesty's exhortation, with moves such as modernising defence assets, including those used by RGK.
'To all members and veterans of the regiment, I extend my heartfelt congratulations on its 60th anniversary,' he said.
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