Journalist John McBeth responds to Sam Roggeveen's post asking why Indonesia is buying American attack helicopters:
It is wise not to forget the envy factor here. For a military that has had to live on scraps for decades, it is a clear source of irritation that Indonesia trails far behind Singapore with its Apaches, F-15s and other modern equipment. The US has gone along with the sale as a manifestation of President Obama's Pivot to Asia. Tactically, the main selling point I think is that they can conceivably be used as an effective weapon in the confines of the Malacca Strait.
Otherwise, they fit in the same category as the Leopard tanks the Indonesians are buying from Germany. How they will operate on over-populated Java, with its poor road system and under-strength bridges is a mystery to me. But remember: the Singaporeans and the Malaysians both have Leopards. Here's a piece I wrote on this subject last year.