West Sulawesi Provincial Government Supports Citilink Opening Mamuju-Balikpapan Flight Route

Photo: Doc. Antara

JAKARTA - The West Sulawesi (Sulbar) Provincial Government supports the steps taken by the airline PT Citilink which will open flight routes from Mamuju City, West Sulawesi Province to Balikpapan City, East Kalimantan Province.

"The West Sulawesi Provincial Government has met and agreed with the Director of Commerce and Cargo for Citilink airline Ichwan F Agus, to open flight routes from Mamuju to Balikpapan and vice versa," said Acting Governor of West Sulawesi Zudan Arif Fakrullah in Mamuju, quoted from Antara, Wednesday, March 6.

He said that so far Tampapadang Mamuju Airport only serves flight routes to Makassar City and vice versa.

"So that with the opening of the flight route to Balikpapan by Citilink, flight activities at Tampapadang Mamuju Airport will increase," he said.

He said flight activities to West Sulawesi through Tampapadang Mamuju Airport must be increased as part of efforts to prepare West Sulawesi as a buffer zone for the new state capital city (IKN) in Kalimantan.

"PT Citilink is a low-cost airline and a subsidiary of Garuda Indonesia, will greatly assist the community's economic activities, and the West Sulawesi Provincial Government continues to strive to increase flight routes in West Sulawesi to welcome IKN," he said.

Zudan said the West Sulawesi Provincial Government also encouraged various local and national events to make more people visit West Sulawesi.

With the Mamuju-Balikpapan flight route, it will make it easier for the people of West Sulawesi who want to travel to Kalimantan because they no longer go to Makassar first.

Meanwhile, Citilink airline's Director of Commerce and Cargo, Ichwan F Agus, said Citilink opened a flight route to West Sulawesi because it was considered likely from the aspect of business development.

"The traffic business for the flight route, Jakarta-Makassar-Mamuju or Jakarta-Balikpapan-Mamuju is quite likely so that Citilink will open its flight route," he said.