State aircraft industry PT (PT DI) has the capacity to build amphibious planes, member of Commission I of the House of Representatives Al Muzammil Yusuf said Thursday.

He said that amphibious planes may provide a solution to Indonesia as an archipelago because such aircraft can land in many places without depending on land infrastructure.

He even suggested the President to develop PT DI by building amphibious planes.

“Actually the President, through the defense minister, the research and technology minister, the minister of state enterprises, and the home minister, needs to bridge the regional administration heads to open transportation routes by using amphibious planes,” he said.

But the company`s minus financial balance sheet is posing a serious obstacle to PT Dirgantara Indonesia in making an more progressive expansion in building airplanes and other strategic projects in the aviation sector.

Technology and development director of PT Dirgantara Indonesia Andi Alisyahbana said in Bandung that PT DI will build amphibious planes under a cooperation with the German plane builder Dornier Seawings.

“PT DI is currently preparing the production and customer after sales support. And the amphibious planes will be marketed in 2012,” he said.

Source : Antara