TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Ministry to study Jokowi’s open sky proposal
Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said foreign airlines would have to fulfill tough requirements to operate in the country.
Change Size
Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi (Antara/Wahyu Putro A)
T
he Transportation Ministry is studying a proposal made by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who suggested inviting foreign airlines to serve domestic routes as an attempt to push down airfares.
“We will not easily accept all foreign airlines. Our aviation industry must still have high [standards]. Therefore, we are studying the proposal and we will report [the results of a study] to the President before making a decision,” Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said in Jakarta on Monday as quoted by kompas.com.
Budi said foreign airlines had to fulfill tough requirements to operate in the country.
First, they must abide by the Cabotage principle of the aviation industry, namely establish a company in Indonesia and ensure 51 percent of their shares are owned by Indonesian nationals.
The foreign company would also need to assure flight safety and security, including by conducting regular airworthy checks by the Transportation Ministry.
Budi assured that those requirements were not easily fulfilled by foreign airlines. “Aviation is a tight business with tough requirements. The number of players is also limited,” he added. (bbn)
