Sidoarjo council complains to airlines over airport misnomer

Tribunnews.comThe Sidoarjo Legislative Council in East Java is complaining about how a number of airlines incorrectly inform passengers about the exact location of Juanda International Airport.

“The correct information should be Surabaya Juanda International Airport in Sidoarjo and not in Surabaya,” council speaker Dawud Budi Sutrisno told reporters on Monday.

“A number of airlines, however, still say the airport is in Surabaya and not in Sidoarjo.”

He said following a protest from the council, the Transportation Ministry had issued a letter telling all airlines to change the reference from Surabaya airport to Surabaya Juanda Airport in Sidoarjo.

“We have sent the letter to the East Java governor, 15 airlines and [state airport operator] PT Angkasa Pura I to provide correct information to the traveling public,” he said.

The Surabaya Juanda International Airport in Sidoarjo is located in the Sedati district in Sidoarjo regency, some 20 kilometers from Surabaya proper.

The airport has an area of 51,500-square-meters and serves some 12.5 million passengers a year, almost twice its design capacity of only 6.5 million passengers per year.

As many airports are built outside the strict jurisdiction of their designated cities, disputes have emerged between cities and the regions where the airports are actually located.

The Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, for example, is actually located in Tangerang in Banten province instead of Jakarta proper. Airlines, however, continually refer to Jakarta instead of Tangerang or Banten upon arrival at the airport. (nvn)