Airport Operator Angkasa Pura I Upbeat on Indonesia’s Airline Industry Revival

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Airport operator PT Angkasa Pura I is optimistic Indonesia’s airline industry will revive itself in the second half of 2020 as the number of flight passengers has so far increased in July.

The state-owned company operates 15 airports across Indonesia.

From July 1-7 Angkasa Pura I recorded 227,642 passenger movement, 3,869 aircraft movement, and 7.21 million kilograms of cargo movement.

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The data represents an uptick in comparison to the 222,040 passenger movement recorded in June 1-15.

Angkasa Pura I CEO Faik Fahmi said the increase in flight passengers was due to a change in Decree Number 9 Year 2020 by the National Covid-19 Task Force.

It allows flight passengers to present results of a rapid or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test from 14 days before their departure. Previously, passengers were given a three-day timeframe for the test results.

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“This regulation gives passengers more time to prepare themselves and arrange their travel plans better,” said Faik on July 8.

Since early July, Juanda Surabaya Airport became the busiest airport having attended to 56,268 passengers, 723 aircraft movement, and handling as many as 816,772 kilograms of cargo.

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Sultan Hasanuddin Airport in Makassar came in second place having facilitated 51,998 passengers, 708 aircraft movement, and managing 1,184,391 kilograms of cargo.

“In total, aircraft traffic between April 25 and July 5 in Angkasa Pura I’s 15 airports have served as many as 23,102 aircraft movement and handled 73.2 million kilograms of cargo,” said Faik.

The state-owned company will continue to enforce and monitor Covid-19 health protocols in the new normal period with the aim of breaking the chain of transmission.

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