Maudey Khalisha, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto has instructed the reactivation of Bandung's Husein Sastranegara Airport for commercial flights, alongside plans to reopen Yogyakarta's Adisutjipto Airport, according to officials in the West Java capital.
Bandung Mayor Muhammad Farhan said the government is currently studying Husein Airport's commercial potential and ways to restore passenger traffic, after its operations were limited to scheduled propeller aircraft serving intercity routes within Java.
"In 2019, Husein handled around 3.8 million passengers, with 3 million domestic travelers and 800,000 international passengers," Farhan said on Wednesday, as quoted by Kompas.com.
The Bandung administration hopes the airport can recover passenger traffic levels seen before the pandemic and before the transfer of most flights to Kertajati International Airport in Majalengka, which is located in the eastern part of West Java.
Farhan added that preparations for the airport's reactivation remained fully under the authority of the central government.
However, the Bandung city administration was focusing on supporting infrastructure upgrades, including road access, public facilities and toll road connectivity, while preparing budget allocations in next year's regional budget.
Farhan also pointed to the Nurtanio flyover project, which he said would improve traffic flow to and from the airport, as the airport will only accommodate Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 aircraft, not wide-body planes, in which the airport's existing capacity remained sufficient to support Bandung's economic growth, particularly through tourism and business travel.
"Pak President has issued instructions for two inner-city airports [including Adisutjipto Airport in Yogyakarta] to be reactivated immediately," he said, though he could not confirm exactly when commercial operations would fully resume.
The airport reactivation plan was discussed during a meeting between Deputy Defense Minister Donny Ermawan and Deputy National Development Planning Minister Febrian Alphyanto Ruddyard in Jakarta on Monday, following a broader plan to develop a "Sustainable Aerospace Park" in Kertajati, combining commercial and military maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities.
The discussion came after Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin revealed earlier this month that the United States had floated the possibility of making Indonesia a regional maintenance hub for Hercules C-130 aircraft.
Sjafrie said US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had proposed centering Hercules aircraft maintenance in Indonesia, with Kertajati being considered as one of the potential locations due to its vast land area and existing aviation facilities.
The proposal remains at an exploratory stage, but officials said Kertajati's aviation infrastructure and available space made it a strategic candidate for future aerospace industry development.
The Defense Ministry expressed support for the shared use of Indonesian Air Force bases for civilian commercial aviation while emphasizing that military readiness would remain the top priority, as the government pushes strategic programs spanning defense asset management, transportation infrastructure optimization and the development of Indonesia's aerospace industry.