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Airlines ready but doubtful on long-term prospects of flights to IKN
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Pelita Air's Airbus A320 lands at Soekarno-Hatta airport in Tangerang, Banten, on April 11, 2022. (Courtesy of Pertamina)
I
ndonesian airlines are ready to support air connectivity to Nusantara, the country’s new capital city (IKN) in Kalimantan, as the government steps up the project’s development and woos investors to come.
However, uncertainties of its future and a matter of profitability may stand in the way for airlines to fully capitalize on the opportunity.
There are two locations airlines can bring their passengers to the new capital city: Balikpapan’s Sepinggan International Airport or Samarinda’s APT Pranoto International Airport, through which airlines could secure the future traffic of IKN.
Balikpapan is around 50 kilometers closer to IKN than Samarinda, which has only been opened since 2018, while the former has been operational since the 1990s.
National flag carrier Garuda Indonesia is one of the airlines that has regular flights from and to Balikpapan for some time, while it is yet to open flights to Samarinda.
Garuda Indonesia CEO Irfan Setiaputra told The Jakarta Post on Monday that Garuda “is still planning” for flights to Samarinda and “total passenger” is the biggest challenge to bank on IKN connectivity.
Irfan said Garuda was ready to support connectivity in the new capital, but lack of incentives from the government may hinder the airline from fully realizing its role.
