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Indonesia eyes more international flights
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Garuda Indonesia airlines are parked at Terminal 3 of Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten. (Tempo/Tony Hartawan)
T
he government is aiming for a significant increase in international flights, which it is confident will account for 40 percent of all flights at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport by the end of 2017, up from the current portion of 15 to 20 percent.
The ambitious target comes after the country’s largest airport launched operations at its new Terminal 3 for Garuda Indonesia’s international flights on May 1.
“International flights provide the opportunity to attract tourists. This is the instant way to increase the country’s foreign reserves and thereby contribute to economic growth,” Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said on Monday.
Garuda Indonesia president director Pahala N. Mansury said that as of May 1, all of Garuda’s international flights had moved to Terminal 3. The transition from Terminal 2 to Terminal 3 had gone smoothly without any hassle.
“This is also part of our efforts to improve our services. Previously, we only had 13 check-in counters [at Terminal 2], but now we have 26 check-in counters [at Terminal 3],” he said.
(Read also: Terminal 3 to open Garuda’s international flights in May)
The national flag carrier was the first Indonesian airline to serve international routes. It currently operates 17 direct international flights to countries in Asia, Australia and Europe.
Eight airlines from the SkyTeam alliance, including ANA Airlines, Japan Airlines, Delta Airlines and KLM Airlines, would also move to Terminal 3, Angkasa Pura II (AP II) president director Muhammad Awaluddin said. After the Idul Fitri holiday, the state-owned airport operator aims to move the remaining 24 international airlines to Terminal 3 in a process it hopes to complete by August.
By concentrating international flights at Terminal 3, AP II aims to increase the capacity of Terminal 1 from 9 million passengers to 18 million passengers a year. Likewise, the airport operator also plans to double the capacity of Terminal 2 to 18 million passengers per year. Terminal 3 currently has a capacity of 25 million passengers per year. “With the reposition, the burden at each terminal will be distributed well,” Awaluddin said.
Terminal 3 is equipped with 65 immigration counters, 30 autogates in the departure and arrival areas.
