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Soekarno-Hatta sees passenger influx
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oekarno-Hatta International Airport has recorded an influx of air passengers and airport visitors as airlines resume operations under eased restrictions during the transition to the "new normal".
Airport spokesperson Febri Simatupang said thousands more passengers per day had been to the country’s main aviation hub in Tangerang, Banten, following the gradual lifting of physical restrictions starting in mid-June.
“As we know, the number of passengers at Soekarno-Hatta during the mudik (exodus) travel ban varied between 5,000 and 6,000 [per day],” Febri told kompas.com on Wednesday, referring to the tradition of people returning to their hometowns to celebrate Idul Fitri.
"During the [transitional period], that figure has shot up to between 17,000 and 20,000 [per day]," he said.
He added that the majority of the airlines with flights to and from the airport – including all airlines under the Garuda Indonesia Group and the Lion Air Group – had resumed commercial flights in compliance with the latest health protocols to minimize the risk of COVID-19 transmission between passengers.
Despite the notable increase in passenger numbers, the figures still pale in comparison to prepandemic passengers, at about 10 percent of regular passenger traffic.
“It’s still far from normal. The number of passengers at Soekarno-Hatta before the pandemic typically ranged from 150,000 to 180,000 per day,” he said.
The airport's management took considerable flak ahead of Idul Fitri, when photos of thousands of passengers flocking to Terminal 2 despite the physical distancing rules circulated in the press and on social media.
According to the latest government policy on air travel, all passengers must produce a document showing a negative COVID-19 result through a rapid diagnostic test or the more accurate polymerase chain reaction (PCR) swab test before they are permitted to fly. (rfa)
