- VIVA.co.id/ Adi Suparman (Bandung)
VIVA – Kertajati Airport in Majalengka, West Java has several potentials as one of Indonesia's airports, such as its runway which is approximately 3,000 meters long. This makes Kertajati Airport an alternative international airport.
"At first, the President asked me to support Kertajati as an alternative to the international airport and we know that West Java has Husein Airport but the runway is short, while Kertajati has a length of approximately 3,000 meters," Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi said after attending a meeting at the Presidential Office, Jakarta, on Friday.
In addition, Kertajati Airport is being prepared to become a premium airport, he added.
"Kertajati will become a premium airport, yes, because the length of the runway is the same as Kulon Progo, yes slightly below Soekarno-Hatta which is 3,300 (meters). So, the largest cargo transport aircraft, the Antonov, can land," he informed.
Menteri Perhubungan Budi Karya Sumadi.
- Dokumentasi Kemenhub.
The minister said the Cisumdawu Toll Road from Bandung to Kertajati will also support Kertajati Airport on April 15, 2023.
Furthermore, in the meeting, President Joko Widodo instructed him to think about how Kertajati can be effective and can reduce the load of Soekarno-Hatta. It is known that the number of flights in Soekarno-Hatta is close to the same as before COVID-19, with approximately 1,100 or 1,200 movements, but with higher occupancy.
Minister Sumadi said, the ability of Kertajati Airport to attract investors to invest there. He said that his party and the West Java Regional Government will oversee the process of what will be done there.
"I have also reported this, Mr. President has directed me, it can be carried out. If there are rules, they must be obeyed. So, I also met several times with the Governor of West Java to discuss this so that there are no violations related to traffic," he concluded.
