The new terminal at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Indonesia, once operational, should strive to compete with Changi Airport of Singapore, urges a government official.
“I am proud to see the progress of construction at Terminal 3. All work is proceeding as per target and the results are good. Thus, my understanding is that Soekarno-Hatta airport will deliver even better service than the Changi Airport of Singapore,” Minister of State-Owned Enterprises Rini Soemarno said recently.
She added that she hoped Soekarno-Hatta Airport, particularly the new Terminal 3 Ultimate, can achieve five-star ranking from Sky Track to help promote Indonesia as a world tourism destination.
The director of state-owned airport operator Angkasa Pura II, Budi Karya Sumadi, said the construction of Terminal 3 Ultimate has entered the last phase.
“We hope that the first phase of Terminal 3 Ultimate will become operational in May 2016. We can use some areas in the terminal before the Lebaran Day (or Eid-al-Fitr),” Sumadi said, as quoted by Antara News.
Angkasa Pura II will revitalize Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, including the expansion of the east cross taxiway that will enable wide-body airplanes, such as Boeing 777, to land and take off.
Sumadi said the first phase of Terminal 3 Ultimate will be utilized by Garuda Indonesia airline and the Sky Team member carriers.
The company plans to finish the construction of the 42.2-hectare Terminal 3 Ultimate by 2019, which will provide an additional runway of 3,000 meters by 60 meters.
The new terminal will have a capacity of 15 million passengers in the first phase and 25 million passengers upon its full operation, which is expected to begin in February next year.
Angkasa Pura II has signed a loan agreement worth a total of IDR2.1 trillion (US$156.5 million) with three state-run banks to finance the expansion project at Soekarno-Hatta Airport, the country’s largest and busiest international airport.
It envisions Soekarno-Hatta as competing with aviation hubs in neighboring countries, such as Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, Thailand, and Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia.
The new terminal is intended to ease traffic at the crowded airport, which can officially accommodate only 25 million passengers annually but now serves over 62 million passengers each year.
Photo: Gunawan Kartapranata
