Angkasa Pura

In the midst of a pandemic, General Besar Sudirman Airport Maintains Flight Connectivity

The antigen rapid test facility will soon be available to make it easier for passengers to follow the health protocol

Jakarta - Jenderal Besar Sudirman Airport continues to maintain flight connectivity in Purbalingga, Central Java.

Activated on June 1, 2021, General Besar Sudirman Airport has established connectivity from West to East in Java, via the Jakarta - Purbalingga - Surabaya flight route operated by Citilink airline.

General Manager General Besar Airport Sudirman Catur Sudarmono said that in the midst of this pandemic, flight connectivity in Purbalingga was maintained.

"The flight slots available at Jenderal Besar Soedirman Airport are currently the Jakarta - Purbalingga - Surabaya and Surabaya - Purbalingga - Jakarta routes. AP II together with Citilink are committed to always focus on serving the journey of the people of Purbalingga and its surroundings."

"Since flight access was first opened in June, flight traffic in Purbalingga has been growing until now," said Catur Sudarmono.

Furthermore, explained Catur Sudarmono, the implementation of health protocols in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic is a priority in order to provide a sense of security and comfort for airplane passengers.

"In an effort to support the implementation of health protocols, the COVID-19 antigen rapid test facility will be available in the near future at Jenderal Besar Sudirman Airport so that prospective airplane passengers can more easily carry out tests."

Meanwhile, according to the Circular Letter of the Minister of Transportation Number 62/2021, for flights between airports in Java - Bali, airplane passengers who have undergone the second dose of vaccination can show the results of the rapid antigen test as a flight requirement.

General Besar Sudirman Airport is an airport that has the task of expanding flight connectivity in the southern part of Central Java, opening flight access in Purbalingga and surrounding cities such as Banjarnegara, Banyumas, Cilacap, Kebumen and the Residency of Banyumas.

“Many flight routes in Java are made through the northern part. With the existence of Jenderal Besar Soedirman Airport, flight traffic in the southern part will increase so that it can encourage economic growth in this region, "said Catur Sudarmono.

Furthermore, he said that the aviation market in Purbalingga is the original Purbalingga residents who migrated or worked in other cities.

“Traffic at this airport is usually quite high on weekends, dominated by residents who return to Purbalingga and surrounding cities after a week of working outside the city. Usually it takes them hours by land, now with the airport it is only less than 1 hour flight. This airport has been waiting for its presence by the public from 15 years ago," said Catur Sudarmono.

In addition, Jenderal Besar Soedirman Airport of course also supports the growth of the tourism sector in Purbalingga and surrounding cities.

General Besar Sudirman Airport has a runway with dimensions of 1,600 x 30 meters and an apron of 69 x 103 meters.

The existence of this airport cannot be separated from the full support of the Purbalingga Regency Government which provides a temporary passenger terminal measuring 20 x 20 meters. As for the future, it is planned to build a terminal with a capacity of 300,000 passengers/year.

Station Manager Citilink Purbalingga Muhamad Mulyanudin said that in serving Jakarta - Purbalingga - Surabaya flights and vice versa, Citilink uses ATR 72-600 turbo propeller aircraft with a capacity of around 72 passengers.

Citilink has received flight slots on Thursday and Saturday to operate the Jakarta - Purbalingga - Surabaya route and vice versa.