Meeting The Minister Of Umrah-Hajj To Transportation, Minister Of Transportation Budi Karya Want Saudi Airlines To Join Aviation At Kertajati

Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi (three right) during his visit to Saudi Arabia. (Kemenhub)

Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi arrived in Saudi Arabia and met a number of parties in Mecca, Jeddah and Riyadh, on Sunday today to continue working visits to South Asia and the Middle East. During the meeting, Minister of Transportation Budi offered to increase cooperation in the aviation sector for Hajj, Umrah, and tourism which is expected to restore the aviation industry and the community's economy after being affected by the pandemic. Arriving in Saudi Arabia, Budi was greeted by the Deputy Minister of Transportation of Saudi Arabia Saad bin Abdul Aziz Al-Khalab. Then the Minister of Transportation met with the Minister of Umrah and Hajj of Saudi Arabia Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, the Minister of Transportation and Logistics of Saudi Arabia Saleh Al-Jasser, and the Director General of Saudi Airlines Ibrahim-Al Omar. In addition, the Minister of Transportation also met with former Minister of Hajj and Umrah of Saudi Arabia Muhammad Saleh Banten. When meeting with the two Saudi Arabian Ministers, the Minister of Transportation told about Umrah flights through Kertajati Airport, West Java, which have been taking place regularly, and appreciated the support of the Saudi Arabian government for helping to provide Umrah flight slots to Indonesia through Kertajati Airport. "Currently Garuda Indonesia and Lion Air are already operating. In the future, we encourage Saudi Airlines to be able to serve Umrah flights from and to Kertajati. In 2023, we will make Kertajati Airport a Hajj embarration," said Minister Budi in a written statement received in Jakarta, Antara, Sunday night. The Minister of Transportation revealed that Saudi Arabia offered Thai Airport as a point for Hajj flights from Indonesia. This is offered with the aim of reducing the density of flight groups of pilgrims at Jeddah and Medina Airports, and reducing the stay of Hajj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia so as to reduce the cost of Hajj. He said bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the aviation sector had existed for a long time, namely on December 15, 1988, through the signing of the Indonesian – Saudi Arabian air relations agreement. This was followed by the signing of the MoU which regulates air transportation rights in 2017, where Indonesia opened passenger and cargo flights at a number of airports in Jakarta, Surabaya, Medan, Makassar, Denpasar, Solo, Balikpapan and Palembang. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia opened passenger and cargo flights at a number of airports in Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, Medina, and Taif. Prior to the pandemic, Saudi Arabia's airline Saudi Airlines had made flights from Saudi Arabia to a number of airports in Indonesia, namely Soekarno Hatta, Juanda Surabaya, and Kualanamu Medan. However, since the pandemic Saudi Arabia has only made flights to Soekarno Hatta Airport. Meanwhile, a number of national airlines have also made flights to Saudi Arabia via Garuda Indonesia and Lion Air airlines. "The Saudi Arabian side expressed some wishes. They want to add flight slots to Soekarno Hatta Airport. In addition, they also want to serve flights to Denpasar, Bali and Surabaya. They also want to open points to Yogyakarta," he said. At the request, the Minister of Transportation asked the Director General of Civil Aviation to discuss in detail and technically with the Director General of Civil Aviation Saudi Arabia (GACA), in accordance with the applicable bilateral agreement. "We also want the Government of Saudi Arabia to open its fifth transport rights for Indonesia, so that Indonesian airlines can open tour packages with Umrah," said the Minister of Transportation. Then, when meeting with Saudi Airlines leaders, the Minister of Transportation also invited the Saudi Arabian airline to serve flights to 10 priority tourist destinations such as Lake Toba, Tanjung Kelayang, Borobudur Temple, Gunung Bromo, Wakatobi, Mandalika, Labuan Bajo, Morotai, Thousand Islands, and Tanjung Lesung. "Saudi airlines can operate directly through existing bilateral air transportation services agreements, or through cooperation with Indonesian airlines," he said. Also present at this meeting were the Director General of Civil Aviation Maria Kristi Endah, AP II President Director Muhammad Awaluddin, and the ranks of the Ministry of Transportation.