After 1 Year Closed, General Sudirman Airport Purbalingga Finally Re-opened, Acting President Director Of Wings Air Confessed To Be Grateful

Photo: Doc. Between

JAKARTA - General Besar Airport (JB) Sudirman in Purbalingga Regency, Central Java, has returned to serving commercial flights after being on hiatus for almost a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Today, August 5, is the day we have been waiting for because we have been waiting for the operation of General Besar Sudirman Airport for a long time," said Purbalingga Regent Dyah Hayuning Pratiwi in Purbalingga, quoted from Antara, Friday.

The regent said this when giving a speech on the inaugural flight of the Wings Air airline with the route Pondok Cabe-Purbalingga round trip (PP) which marked the reopening of commercial flight services at JB Sudirman Airport.

According to him, JB Sudirman Purbalingga Airport was opened and inaugurated directly by President Joko Widodo in 2021.

"However, not long after it opened, the operation of this airport, we were indeed hit by a very extraordinary COVID-19 pandemic. Of course this had an impact on flight requirements, which were rather strict at that time," he said.

In fact, at the start of operations, he said, passenger occupancy at JB Sudirman Airport was quite high because the airport not only served the Purbalingga community, but also other residents from the southern part of Central Java.

In this case, the occupancy of passengers using flights from JB Sudirman Airport at the beginning of operations ranged from 69-75 percent.

"So, this is relatively good, positive for a new airport," said the Regent who is familiarly called Tiwi.

Apart from the tight flight requirements, he said, the operation of JB Sudirman Airport had been suspended for several months because the ATR 72 type aircraft destined for Jakarta was only served by Halim Perdanakusuma Airport, which at that time was undergoing revitalization in order to welcome the momentum of the G20 Presidency of Indonesia.

Furthermore, the Tiwi Regent admitted that he was very grateful and gave his appreciation to President Joko Widodo through the Ministry of Transportation, PT Angkasa Pura II (Persero), the Air Force, and the Governor of Central Java who had sought various ways so that JB Sudirman Airport could be reopened to serve flights. commercial.

"Thank God there is a solution because Halim Perdanakusuma Airport is still in the stage of revitalization, finally the President assigned the Minister of Transportation of the Republic of Indonesia to use Pondok Cabe Airport access," he said.

Thus, he said, several airports such as JB Sudirman Purbalingga Airport and Ngloram Airport in Blora Regency could resume operations.

He admitted that in fact his party hoped that the re-operation of JB Sudirman Airport was expected to be carried out during the Lebaran 2022 momentum.

"However, we are well aware that the process that must be passed is a long one," said the Regent.

Meanwhile, Wings Air's Acting President Director Captain Fitzgerald Julian Rachman said he was grateful that Wings Air's inaugural flight from Pondok Cabe Airport to JB Sudirman Airport Purbalingga could be carried out safely and safely.

He also expressed his gratitude for the coordination and cooperation carried out by all parties, so that the inaugural flight can be carried out today.

"Currently we serve Pondok Cabe-Purbalingga flights then Purbalingga-Pondok Cabe and temporarily once a week," he said.

He said that his party did not rule out the possibility of increasing the frequency of flights in Purbalingga by looking at existing developments and potentials.

"We hope that the flight services provided by Wings Air can make a major contribution to the progress of Purbalingga and the surrounding area," said Julian.

In serving flights at JB Sudirman Airport, Wings Air operates ATR 72-600 aircraft and temporarily only operates every Friday.

The departure schedule from Pondok Cabe Airport to JB Sudirman Airport is at 08.20 WIB, then departs again from JB Sudirman Airport to Pondok Cabe Airport at 09.50 WIB.