The opening of Medan Kuala Namu International airport next August or September will put the spotlight on Medan. North Sumatra capital is due to become Indonesia’s newest hub not only for Sumatra itself but also for the entire Western part of Indonesia
MEDAN- Everyone is impatient now to witness the opening of Indonesia’s newest Greenfield airport in Kuala Namu, near Medan, Northern Sumatra capital and at the same time Sumatra’s largest metropolis with 2.5 million inhabitants. It has taken over a decade to see the airport coming out. Kuala Namu international airport has been postponed a few times. Originally planned in 2009, it was then rescheduled to 2010, then 2011 and 2012.
Latest information about the opening airport is now in August or early September. But this time, it is all about delays for the completion of a new road. The absence of a proper road connecting the new airport to Medan located 35 km southwest of the airport postponed the official opening from March to August. According to Tri Sunoko, the President of state-owned airport operator Angkasa Pura II (AP II), “the current condition of the road would automatically disturb the transportation access and mobility of passengers from and to the new airport”.
A train service is however ready to carry passengers to Medan city centre. However, Angkasa Pura II expects however that most travellers would come to the airport by road. Recently, the government also attributed a concession for a new tollroad between North Sumatra capital city and the airport but it is unlikely to be completed before 2016.
With Kuala Namu fully operational, Medna will benefit from an airport able to receive up to 8.5 million passengers a year in its phase 1 and 14 million in its phase 2. In contrary to the current Medan airport in Polonia, Kuala Namu huge land reserves provide sufficient capacity for up to 50 million passengers.
Kuala Namu will be equipped with a 3,750-meter runway and an apron that can accommodate 33 wide-body aircraft, a capacity which will eventually turn the airport into an efficient hub.
Then it is not surprising that both Garuda Indonesia and AirAsia are looking to expand out of Medan, turning the destination into one of the hottest in the country for airlines.
Garuda is now looking then to expand its services out of Medan by turning the city into its fourth regional hub, after Jakarta, Denpasar and Makassar (Sulawesi). Garuda Indonesia currently has been linking for a couple of years Medan with Jakarta, Bandah Aceh, Pekanbaru and Singapore (in code-share with Silk Air). It recently added flights to Batam, Padang and Palembang with a brand new CRS1000 Next Gen, able to transport up to 96 passengers.
According to Garuda Indonesia CEO Emirsyah Satar, Medan will be the airline’s newest point of distribution in the future for the western part of Indonesia. The carrier plans to further expand its flight services to Singapore (served with its own aircraft), Kuala Lumpur and Penang. Penang will be Garuda’s first new international destination and flights are due to begin on June 1.
“This will offer easier access for people from Batam, Padang and Palembang to continue their journeys to these foreign cities,” he recently told to the Jakarta Post. It is also plan to link Medan to Garuda’s other hubs in Makassar and Denpasar as well as opening a new route from Medan to Surabaya.
Indonesia AirAsia is also looking to expand out of Medan. The carrier currently flies to seven destinations out of Medan including regional flights to Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Bangkok. According to Indonesia AirAsia commercial director, Bernard Francis, the airline will start linking the North Sumatran capital with Jakarta and Johor Bahru, Malaysia, on May 16 and June 7. Three Airbus A320 will be stationed from May in Medan.
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
