KUALA LUMPUR: There are no plans to develop a new air force base in Sabah, says Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein.

       He said that this is because the state's security is not dependent on the location of a new airbase there.

       “At the Defence Ministry (Mindef), we are concerned about the need for assets and to mobilise them to ensure Sabah's continued safety is ensured," he said when answering a question raised by Datuk Mohd Yunus (PH-Hulu Langat) in Dewan Rakyat on Thursday (Nov 25).

       Mohd Yunus had asked if the Ministry was planning to set up a new airbase in Semporna or Kunak in Sabah, adding that Sabah's eastern coastline has been under curfew for eight years.

       "It will scare away the pirates if there were one or two jets based there," he said.

       To a question by Datuk Ahmad Nazlan Idris (BN-Jerantut), Hishammuddin said that the government has approved allocation to buy new trainer and light combat aircraft for the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).

       "The international tender for the aircraft closed on Nov 6 and is currently under evaluation," he said.

       Hishammuddin said that the buying of the aircraft is part of the ministry's Capability 55 (Cap 55) development programme for the armed forces until 2055 to replace the existing Hawk 108 and Hawk 208 aircraft.

       Ahmad had asked if there were plans to replace the aging Hawk aircraft and Aermacchi MB-339CM following the recent fatal crash involving a Hawk 108 in Penang.

       On Nov 16, Captain Mohamad Affendi Bustamy died while Major Mohd Fareez Omar injured in a crash at the Butterworth Air Base in Penang.

       The RMAF has set up a committee to investigate the crash.

       A total of nine Hawk fighter jets have crashed or been involved in emergency landings since 1996.

       Additionally, the MB-339 aircraft have been involved in five incidents since coming into service with the RMAF in 1983.