Flights at Jakarta airport gradually resume after being halted by volcanic eruption

Air traffic at Jakarta’s international airport gradually resumed yesterday after a volcanic eruption caused the grounding of hundreds of flights, affecting more than 300,000 passengers. The disruption caused by the eruption of Anak Krakatau, located 150 kilometers from the Indonesian capital last Sunday, led to the cancellation or postponement of approximately 3,000 flights and impacted over 340,000 travelers, resulting in one of the largest aviation disruptions in the country in recent years. The government announced the resumption of operations at Soekarno-Hatta Airport and four other airports early yesterday, after authorities cleared volcanic ash from the infrastructure. Transport Minister Dudi Burwandi stated that a return to normal air traffic would take time, as airport authorities must ensure that all aircraft are fit for operation. Burwandi told journalists that around 178 aircraft were on the runways at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport yesterday. He added, “We will restart these aircraft, but first, we want to ensure they are airworthy. So it may take some time,” urging passengers to be patient. Three flights departed shortly after the announcement of the resumption of airport operations early yesterday morning. Anak Krakatau is located in the strait separating the islands of Java and Sumatra, and has shown intermittent activity since its emergence in the early 20th century within a crater formed by the 1883 eruption of Krakatau, a disaster that claimed 35,000 lives at the time.