Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto announced plans to negotiate the purchase of four additional Airbus A400M heavy transport aircraft after symbolically receiving and handing over the first unit to the Indonesian Air Force at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base in East Jakarta on Monday, November 3, 2025.
The original contract for two A400M units was signed by Prabowo when he served as Defense Minister in 2021 at the Dubai Airshow, with the Ministry of Defense also signing a letter of intent for four more units for future procurement.
Gerd Weber, Head of the A400M Program at Airbus Defence and Space, confirmed receiving information about the additional four aircraft request but noted it remains a Letter of Intent rather than a firm order, stating that a fleet of six aircraft would be reasonable for a territory as vast as Indonesia.
Karl-Heinz Grossman, Head of Defence & Space International at Airbus, explained that President Prabowo likely wants to first evaluate the performance of the initial aircraft and observe operational processes before finalizing additional purchases, comparing it to testing a car before buying more units.
The military transport aircraft can carry a maximum payload of 37 tons with 340 cubic meters storage volume, reach altitudes up to 40,000 feet at speeds of 0.72 Mach, and operates with a 51-ton fuel capacity enabling longer mission durations for military and humanitarian operations.
