Overview
- An Indonesian Air Force F-16 and a Super Tucano landed and took off from a Lampung toll road in a public demonstration on Wednesday.
- The air force chief said he wants at least one runway-capable toll-road segment in each province, specifying 3,000-meter sections for operations.
- The service said the roadway plan is meant to boost readiness without reducing toll roads’ primary role as public infrastructure.
- Deputy Defense Minister Donny Ermawan Taufanto noted the roads’ 24-meter width is far narrower than standard runways and acknowledged added risk that pilots train to manage.
- Analysts describe the approach as a cheaper alternative to aircraft carriers and note similar highway-landing practices in the United States, Finland and Sweden, though no rollout timeline was announced.