Indonesia’s main airport closure extended until 8.59 am local time after Mount Anak Krakatau eruption
Operations at seven other airports will remain suspended until the same time
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INDONESIA halted flights at several airports including Jakarta’s main gateway after ash from Mount Anak Krakatau spread across Java and Sumatra, with further disruptions possible as eruptions continue.
Soekarno-Hatta International Airport will remain closed until 8.59 am on Sep 7 (9.59 am Singapore time) due to increased volcanic activity, AFP reported.
Operations at seven other airports will remain suspended until the same time, including Husein Sastranegara Airport in Bandung and Radin Inten II Airport near Bandar Lampung in Sumatra.
A tally from the ministry’s aviation division showed 373 flights and nearly 23,000 passengers were affected by the disruptions on Sunday (Sep 6). Totals could climb as the shutdown continues and airlines revise their schedules.
Soekarno-Hatta is the main international gateway to South-east Asia’s largest economy and the centre of air travel across Indonesia’s sprawling archipelago. A prolonged shutdown would strand tens of thousands of passengers and cause delays and cancellations across regional and long-haul routes.
Lion Air Group reported 305 domestic and international cancellations on Sunday, while Garuda Indonesia and AirAsia Indonesia adjusted services to and from Jakarta.
Regional carriers pulled flights as well. Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines and Royal Brunei Airlines cancelled a combined 33 services, while Cathay Pacific offered affected passengers free rebooking, rerouting and refunds.
Volcano’s activity could fluctuate or intensify
Anak Krakatau, located in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra, has been active since early July, with eruptions intensifying on the night of Sep 4, Indonesian news outlet Kompas.com reported.
Ash was detected over parts of Jakarta, Banten and West Java as of 2 pm on Sunday, as well as areas around Lampung, Bengkulu and South Sumatra, according to the weather agency’s website.
Continuing tremors mean the volcano’s activity could fluctuate or intensify, though the timing and scale of future eruptions cannot be predicted, said Lana Saria, head of geological agency at the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, in a separate briefing.
The latest activity points to a continuing supply of gas and magma, but frequent eruptions do not necessarily signal that a larger one is coming, she added.
A flank collapse at Anak Krakatau likely triggered a tsunami in 2018 that killed more than 400 people and injured over 1,000 residents and holidaymakers in Lampung and Banten. BLOOMBERG
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