Write an article about The man entrusted with Malaysia’s Russian mission .Organize the content with appropriate headings and subheadings (h1, h2, h3, h4, h5, h6), Retain any existing tags from Abdul Ghani Aziz (right) with Kubinka air force base commanding-general Pyotr Stepanovich Deynekin (middle) and a Russian pilot kitted up for their MiG-29 test flight. (Abdul Ghani Aziz pic)
KUALA LUMPUR: Over three decades ago, the task of acquiring Malaysia’s first Russian fighter jets rested on one man’s shoulder.
Then serving as the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) deputy chief, Lt-Gen (Rtd) Abdul Ghani Aziz was summoned by then defence minister Najib Razak for the mission after the inaugural 1991 Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace (Lima) exhibition in December.
“I was explicitly told by Najib that (then prime minister) Mahathir Mohamad intended to acquire Russian jets to bolster our air force. This was unchartered territory as Malaysia traditionally procured either British or American, or even Canadian and Australian, airplanes,” said Ghani.
He recalled how Mahathir was impressed with the display put up by the “Russian Knights” aerobatic team flying the Sukhoi Su-27 and the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29 Fulcrum air superiority fighter at Lima.
Ghani, who turned 80 on Aug 4, related this episode during an Aidilfitri reunion with some of his fighter pilots and technical specialists at his residence in Taman Titiwangsa.
(From left) Wong Swee Fong, Huang Chew Siong, Seri Wilson, Abdul Ghani Aziz and Amirul Ghani Abdul Ghani at the Aidilfitri reunion at Ghani’s residence in Taman Titiwangsa. (Adrian David pic)
Among those present were Ghani’s wife Seri Wilson, Abdul Manaf Zainuddin, Huang Chew Siong, Richard Casimir Robless, Amirul Ghani Abdul Ghani, Ooi Ah Bah, Wong Swee Fong and Ling Hong Kam.
Reminiscing, Ghani said he assembled a project team for a fact-finding mission to the Moscow Aircraft Production Organisation (Mapo) plant, the Kubinka air base (home of the “Russian Knights”),and the Krasnodar air base in Russia.
The team included Ghani, pilots Ridzwan Salleh and Chandra Mohan AS Param, and logistician Robless, who were welcomed at the MiG-29’s Mapo plant by then Kubinka air force base commanding-general Pyotr Stepanovich Deynekin.
“We were instructed to undertake a comprehensive evaluation – assess the feasibility and capability of the Russian fighter jets, particularly the MiG-29 – for immediate procurement for the RMAF.
Ghani (seated, second right) and the Malaysian evaluation team being briefed by Russian counterparts in Moscow in 1992. (Abdul Ghani Aziz pic)
“We were also concerned with the question of logistics and engineering support from Russia, should we acquire their aircraft.
“We realised we had a real challenge and a gargantuan task ahead of us as we would be dealing with differences in our work culture, systems of operation, and comprehending the Russian language.
“We even had to deal with Russian instructor pilots who virtually could not speak English during our flight evaluations,” said Ghani.
After one of the test flights on an MiG-29 during Russia’s sub-zero temperatures, Ghani prepared for a post-flight briefing in the crew room.
“The Russian commanding general offered me a shot of vodka to ‘warm me up’ and recover from my flight and sudden exposure to extreme temperatures, high adrenaline, and mild hypotension.
“I had to politely refuse alcohol (as a Muslim) and was in a momentary daze. I only realised later that the vodka was in fact consumed as a ‘recovery anecdote’ by the Russian pilots.
“I told the Russian commander that he should have emphasised it as a recovery tonic and I might have taken it as a medicine!” said Ghani, who became RMAF chief in March 1993.
Ghani preparing for a sortie in an F-5E fighter jet during his attachment at the USAF 425th Squadron at Williams Air Force Base in Phoenix, Arizona. (Abdul Ghani Aziz pic)
Upon returning home, Ghani recommended the MiG-29, also in service with the Indian Air Force, and was confident of relying on them for technical and operational assistance.
By 1994, the RMAF had procured two squadrons of 18 MiG-29N Fulcrums. The pioneer flight and ground crew were earlier sent to Pune in Maharashtra, India and Kubinka for training.
In 2004, two squadrons of 18 Sukhoi Su-30MKM were purchased under a reportedly US$900 million defence package that also opened up the opportunity of sending Malaysia’s first astronaut into space.
Ghani is a rare breed, having been operationally trained to fly 12 types of aircraft and amassing over 5,000 flying hours in his 32-year career. He first flew helicopters (Alouette III), then fighter jets that included the Tebuan CL-41G, Avon Sabre F86 and the Northrop F5 E Tiger II. Later, he flew the transport Hercules C-130 and executive jet Dassault Falcon-900.
Despite being a judge’s son, Ghani initially slogged it out as a National Electricity Board (now Tenaga Nasional Berhad) transformer apprentice before pursuing his flying dream with the RMAF in 1964.
Ghani receiving his ‘wings’ from then RMAF chief air commodore Alaisdair Steedman in 1965. (Abdul Ghani Aziz pic)
“It was a long, arduous journey and I am blessed to have accomplished my flying dream. Never did I foresee becoming an RMAF chief, though.
“At the helm, there was a lot of trust and responsibility placed on me to achieve something useful, credible and purposeful, and rise to the occasion when called upon, to bear full responsibility for any outcome.”
He said one of his concerns was the over-privatisation of the military, which could weaken the capability of the RMAF.
“The capability of the force is the sum of the men’s ability to operate, maintain, repair and restore military equipment and assets to its maximum operational ability with limited resources.
“Imagine, civilians managing the maintenance of our aircraft. Can they measure up when called upon during a crisis?” asked Ghani, who retired early in 1996 at age 52.
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