Hisham: Indonesian jet fighters did intercept our plane

Buka puasa delight: Hishammuddin giving away ‘bubur lambuk’ to a visitor at the Setiawangsa Bazaar Ramadan in Kuala Lumpur.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Defence Ministry has confirmed an incident where a Malaysian aircraft was intercepted by two Indonesian fighter jets while crossing over the Natuna Islands.

Its minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said the aircraft, Charlie C130, which belongs to the Royal Malaysian Air Force, was travelling to Labuan, Sabah, from the Subang airbase when it was intercepted.

"Yes, we have received information that the flight was intercepted by two Indonesian jets. However, we do not have full details of the incident.

"We are in the process of getting the full report," he said after distributing 1,000 of bubur lambuk (porridge) to visitors at the Setiawangsa Ramadan bazaar yesterday.

Hishammuddin also assured that Indonesia and Malaysia had close relations.

"If there were any incident between us, we can deal with each other diplomatically.

“We will not let any kind of incident ruin our ties.

"Plus, I am very close to the Indonesian Defence Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu. If I need to contact him, it wouldn't be a pro­blem," he said.

A source told The Star that during the incident, the Indonesian jets were only notifying the RMAF aircraft that it had entered Indo­nesian air space.

"No untoward incident occurred," he said.