TANGERANG - The state-owned holding company for the aviation and tourism sectors, InJourney and PT Angkasa Pura Indonesia (InJourney Airports) project that the number of airplane passengers during the 2026 Lebaran period will reach around 9 million people.
InJourney's President Director Maya Watono said that passenger aircraft traffic this year is expected to increase by around 2 percent compared to the Lebaran period the previous year.
"During this Eid period, we expect there to be 9 million traffic, an increase of 2 percent compared to last year," he said at a press conference at Soekarno-Hatta Airport, Wednesday, March 11.
Maya said, to anticipate the surge in passengers, InJourney added around 3,000 personnel so that the total number of officers on duty during the Lebaran transportation period reached almost 16,000 people.
"We have deployed around 3,000 personnel who will be on duty 24 hours at all airports during the Lebaran post period. In total, there are almost 16,000 personnel from airport and aviation services ready to serve passengers," he said.
In addition, Maya said all airports would operate 24 hours during the homecoming period, except in Bali which would be temporarily closed during the Nyepi Day celebration.
"We ensure that operations run optimally through 24-hour airport operations, the addition of personnel during the peak homecoming period, and the strengthening of services at hotels and destinations with additional personnel," he said.
Maya said that in addition to the readiness of personnel, his party also anticipated potential flight disruptions due to geopolitical dynamics in the Middle East which in recent times had caused flight delays and cancellations.
Furthermore, Maya added that all entities in the InJourney ecosystem will coordinate and synergize to maintain airport operations and the tourism sector running optimally in the midst of global dynamics.
"With the current geopolitical conditions, of course we also have to anticipate various possibilities such as flight delays or cancellations. However, we are committed to continuing to provide the best service to passengers," said Maya.
Meanwhile, Deputy President Director of Angkasa Pura Indonesia Achmad Syahir said the passenger traffic projection for 2026 is estimated to reach around 160.7 million passengers or an increase of 2 percent compared to 2025.
Meanwhile, aircraft movements are projected to decline slightly by 0.03 percent to around 1,189,791 movements. On the other hand, air cargo is expected to increase by 1.8 percent to around 1.559 million tons.
"So this is also a challenge in the aviation and aviation industry. Among our 37 airports, there are five top ones. Namely CGK, Denpasar, Surabaya, Ujungpandang and Medan," he said.
To support the smooth transportation of Lebaran, InJourney will operate a monitoring post at the airport from March 13 to 30, 2026. At the beginning of the post office period, his party projected that the number of passengers could reach more than 498,000 people with about 3,357 aircraft movements.
"Well, later at the peak it might be around March 15 (2026). The estimated date is 15. Then the reverse flow is on the 28th," explained Achmad.
In addition, his party also anticipates the potential increase in mobility due to the government's policy regarding Work From Anywhere (WFA) which allows people to travel earlier due to longer holidays.
"It is also an opportunity for us to enjoy a longer holiday. But in fact it is not a holiday either, because the activity is still the same as usual but not in the office," he said.
Achmad added that the surge in passengers is expected to occur at two major airports, namely Soekarno-Hatta Airport and I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport in Denpasar.
"At CGK it was Saturday, the 14th around 179,000. Then the return flow on the 28th was around 198,000. Meanwhile, for Bali, Saturday the 14th was around 67,000. And later on the 28th around 73,000," he said.
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