Citilink Officially Opens Flight Denpasar-Papua New Guinea Route

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Citilink airline has re-launched the latest international route flights.

Now, Citilink officially serves direct flights from Ngurah Rai International Airport, Bali to Jacksons International Airport, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.

The inaugural sport started on July 2, 2023 and will fly every two times a week. This is the first scheduled flight to serve the Bali-Papua New Guinea route.

"The opening of this latest international route is a historic moment for both countries and also for Citilink in particular, because Citilink is the first Indonesian airline to make direct flights to connect Indonesia with Papua New Guinea," said Citilink President Director Dewa Kadek Rai, written Wednesday, July 5.

Dewa added that the opening of this new route is a form of Citilink's commitment to increasing connectivity between regions, in this case connecting Indonesia with the country of Papua New Guinea.

Furthermore, Dewa said that the opening of this new route is also expected to improve bilateral relations between the two countries.

"Citilink is always committed to ensuring that all flights run optimally by prioritizing aspects of security, safety and comfort for all customers," he said.

Routes Have Been Waiting For A Long Time

Meanwhile, Deputy Chairman of the Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation Agency (BKSAP) of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Putu Supadma Rudana, said that the Papua New Guinea people had been waiting for this flight route for a long time.

Previously, those who wanted to go to Indonesia, especially Bali, had to transit in Manila or Singapore and others. But now there is a direct flight to Indonesia, especially to Bali," said Putu.

Putu added that from the opening of the flight that connects Indonesia with Papua New Guinea, it is hoped that it can provide the greatest benefit to improving the community's economy.

Head of the Bali Provincial Tourism Office, Tjok Bagus Pemayun, hopes that this flight can add more foreign tourists visiting Bali.

"Our target conveyed by the Governor is 4.5 million visits, as of June 22, we have reached 2.2 million foreign tourists visiting," said Bagus.

Flight Schedule

This Bali-Papua New Guinea route flight operates twice a week, namely on Thursdays and Sundays. The flight will be served by Airbus A320 aircraft.

In detail, the flight schedule from Denpasar to Papua New Guinea will be served with flight number QG 598.

The estimated departure time is 04:00 WITA, and the estimated arrives at 11.00 local time.

Meanwhile, the flight schedule from Papua New Guinea to Denpasar will be served with flight number QG 599.

The departure time is 12.00 local time, and the estimate arrives at 14.55 central Indonesia time.