Indonesia makes inaugural overseas deployment of hospital ship
Ridzwan Rahmat, Singapore - IHS Jane's Navy International
02 February 2016
The Indonesian Navy's hospital ship, Dr Soeharso (990). The vessel made its first overseas medical mission in February. Source: Michael Nitz - Naval Press Service
Key Points
- The Indonesian Navy has deployed its multipurpose hospital on an overseas mission for the first time
- Deployment reflects the country's growing confidence and ambition to establish a greater maritime presence in the region
The Indonesian Navy (Tentara Nasional Indonesia - Angkatan Laut, or TNI-AL) has deployed the multipurpose hospital ship KRI
Dr Soeharso (990) on a week-long medical care mission to East Timor.
The ship, which arrived in the port of Dili on 29 January, is scheduled to complete its mission on 4 February. The TNI-AL's Eastern Fleet (KOARMATIM) confirmed with
IHS Jane's on 2 February that the mission marks the first time that
Dr Soeharso has been deployed on an overseas mission.
"Among the operations that we will be involved in are cataract removal operations, dental treatments, cleft lip surgeries, and circumcisions for children," said a representative from the KOARMATIM's office of communications. Embarked on the ship is a crew of 150 and 250 medical mission personnel from all three branches of the Indonesian armed forces, he said, adding that the service aims to treat about 2,000 patients for the entirety of its mission.
According to
IHS Jane's Fighting Ships ,
Dr Soeharso was commissioned into the TNI-AL as the landing platform dock KRI
Tanjung Dalpele with pennant number 972 in September 2003. The ship, which was built by Dae Sun Shipbuilders of South Korea in Busan, was subsequently redesignated a hospital ship in 2008.
Dr Soeharso features an overall length of 122 m, an overall beam of 22 m, and a hull draught of 4.9 m. It displaces approximately 11,500 tonnes at full load. The platform has a top speed of 15 kt and a standard range of 8,600 n miles at 12 kt. The ship can accommodate two landing craft utility vessels in its docking well and two Super Puma helicopters on its flight deck.
