H

oping on and off a helicopter around Jakarta and its neighboring cities may soon become a new trend for businesspeople, as many executives are willing to spend more to fly pass the gridlock and cut down on commute time.

Rosan Roeslani, chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), eagerly expressed his interest in trying out the chopper service once it was commercially available.

“If I have to go to Bandung for an important event, and also have to attend a wedding party at night in Jakarta, I would opt for a helicopter ride,” Rosan, who manages a number of companies under PT Recapital Advisors, said recently. “As long as it follows the country’s regulations and our safety is assured, I think it is a good alternative,” he added.

In Jakarta’s sprawling metropolis, home to 10 million people, horrendous traffic jams are a headache for businesspeople who need to catch meetings and appointments.

Air charter operator PT Whitesky Aviation plans to tap into this potential by offering commercial helicopter services in Greater Jakarta. It is building a commercial heliport worth US$20 million just outside Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, the country’s largest and busiest airport.

The price for one-way service around Greater Jakarta is expected to be around Rp 1.5 million (US$112.8) to Rp 2 million, while a trip from Jakarta to Bandung will cost around Rp 3 million per passenger. The company expects to have 12 helicopters ready for operation by the time the Helicity port opens in six to seven months.

Hariyadi Sukamdani, chairman of the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo), said he was interested in using the service given the price. “Of course I want to use the service if the price is only Rp 3 million. If there is something urgent, I will definitely use it,” he said.

Until now he has not used helicopter services on account of the high rental prices. “Renting a helicopter costs US$3,000 per hour as far as I know,” he said.

Prominent textile businessman Benny Sutrisno and Sintesa Group CEO Shinta Widjaja Kamdani also showed interest in using the service.

The response from businesspeople is a positive sign for chopper service providers, including the Singapore-based ride-hailing app Grab, which conducted a trial run of its GrabHeli recently.

“We see that there is demand in this sector. We are trying to adjust the supply and demand first,” said Grab Indonesia marketing director Mediko Azwar.

Air charter operator Whitesky Aviation president director Denon Berriklinsky Prawiraatmadja said the company, along with state air navigation firm AirNav, was looking for corridors that could serve as a route for night flights, expected to total 10 corridors in Greater Jakarta.

“It is being reviewed whether it is safe and secure enough, and we can do a [flight] test,” Denon said over the phone, adding that a flight test might be conducted after Idul Fitri.

He said until now, commercial helicopters could only fly Jakarta’s skies from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on account of visual limitations at night. The helicopters, crew and air operator certificate (AOC) also needed to be certified to conduct a night flight.

Whitesky Aviation boasted that it could transport people from Jakarta to Bandung, West Java, in 40 minutes, compared to three to four hours by land transportation. Meanwhile, a trip around Greater Jakarta would only take 15 minutes.

Responding to the matter, the Transportation Ministry’s director general for air transportation, Agus Santoso, said the problem lied in the availability of an instrument to aid pilots when flying at night. “It will be allowed if it is purely guided by a [flight] instrument, both in the helicopter and also at the heliport,” he told The Jakarta Post. (rdi)