Indonesia recently doubled the number of airports designated as international airports as a way of boosting tourism and improving economic growth under the administration of President Prabowo Subianto.
Per a report from national news agency Antara, this decision reverses a policy set last year by then-President Joko Widodo which reduced the number of international airports by half due to increasing operational costs.
On 12th August, the Indonesian government assigned international status to 40 airports, up from 22 previously.
The move adds airports in densely populated East Java province and strategic industrial locations like Weda Bay and Morowali Industrial Park, both of which are key hubs for the country’s nickel mining and processing sector.
What needs to be done
Newly appointed airports must first prepare immigration, customs, and quarantine services and comply with international safety standards before accepting overseas flights.
Indonesian director-general of civil aviation Lukman F Laisa declared in a statement: “The international status of an airport carries no small responsibility.”
Furthermore, the additional designation of airports is a reflection of the current administration’s drive to maximise direct international flights nationwide to stimulate regional tourism and business across the archipelago.
In 2024, the Widodo administration halved the number of international airports to 17, in the name of reducing expenditures.
Officials said then that only five of Indonesia’s international airports, including Jakarta and Bali, operated regular overseas flights to various countries, while the rest offered only limited routes or none at all.
