BKIPM Asks To Open International Flights In Aceh, This Is The Reason

Flights (Photo: Pexels)

JAKARTA - The Aceh Fish Quarantine, Quality Control and Fishery Products Safety Center (BKIPM) stated that around 300 kilograms (kg) of Acehnese crabs are exported every day through Medan Kualanamu Airport to Thailand, because international flights have not yet been opened from Aceh.

"There are our business actors who export daily crabs from Kualanamu Airport to Thailand, as much as 300 kilograms per day," said Head of BKIPM Aceh Dicky Agung Setiawan, in Banda Aceh, quoted from ANTARA, Saturday, September 3.

Dicky said the crab exports were carried out through Medan Kualanamu Airport because Sultan Iskandar Muda Airport (SIM) in Aceh Besar had not been able to serve international flights.

Aceh SIM Airport has indeed been designated as one of the airports that will serve international flights during this COVID-19 period by the Central Government. However, to this day it has not been implemented.

"Therefore, some of our business actors export doing it through Medan Kualanamu Airport," he said.

Therefore, Dicky hopes that the Central Government will open international flights from SIM airport as soon as possible, so that exporters can send their products back directly from Aceh.

Moreover, the distance between Aceh and Thailand and several other southeastern Asian countries is not too far away, so it can have an effective and positive impact on Aceh's own income.

"We really hope that SIM airports will soon be able to serve international flights, so that we can export directly to destination countries," said Dicky.