TNI Commander Finds 'Valuable Lesson' in Sunken Naval Submarine Tragedy

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) commander Hadi Tjahjanto stated in a House hearing on Thursday, May 6, 2020, that the tragic sinking of the naval submarine KRI Nanggala 402 is a valuable lesson on the risks and stakes that face TNI soldiers.

"That the task of a TNI soldier involves extreme risks," said the commander in the hearing with Commission I House legislators at the Parliament on May 6, 2021. 

Hadi asserted that this momentum must be used to evaluate the country's primary weapons defense systems (alutsista), especially the Indonesian Navy (TNI AL) submarine fleet "and the steps that will be taken to modernize our submarines."

Hadi insisted that the deaths of the 53 sailors of the KRI Nanggala 402 were a tragic loss for everyone as the Navy not only lost 53 of its finest men but also one of its most strategic defense systems.

In the hearing, the TNI commander also reported that the victims' families have been compensated through scholarship programs for the sailors' children and also honored the deceased men through a promotion and jalasena star honors.

The Indonesian Navy submarine KRI Nanggala 402 lost contact on Wednesday, April 21, in the Bali strait as it was commencing a routine torpedo drill. Four days later, the commander officially announced that the entire submarine crew was pronounced dead after obtaining visual proof of the submarine breaking into three sections over 800 meters on the ocean floor. 

FRISKI RIANA