Facilities at two Jakarta airports better<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Ministry of Transportation is upgrading
\ntechnical facilities at two Jakarta airports to cater to Asia
\nPacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum leaders, who will
\nconvene in the West Java city of Bogor in November.<\/p>\n
Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto announced after
\nattending a hearing with Commission V of the House of
\nRepresentatives (DPR) yesterday that the radio navigation system
\nand radar at Soekarno-Hatta airport in Cengkareng, west of here,
\nand Halim Perdanakusuma airport in East Jakarta are being
\nimproved by Hughes Corporation of the United States.<\/p>\n
APEC leaders traveling here on special aircraft, including
\nAmerican President Bill Clinton, are expected to land at Halim
\nPerdanakusuma while the others, who will arrive on commercial
\nflights, will land at Soekarno-Hatta.<\/p>\n
\"The US$17.5 million improvement projects will be completed in
\nOctober,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Haryanto said last week that several lights along Soekarno-
\nHatta's runways were broken and that Indonesia needs to import
\nreplacements from France.<\/p>\n
The minister, however, declined recent reports that most
\nairports in Indonesia lack adequate facilities and
\ninfrastructures.<\/p>\n
Executives of state air carriers Garuda Indonesia and Merpati
\nNusantara last week told the commission, which is in charge of
\ntransportation, public works, tourism and telecommunications,
\nthat navigation systems at many airports in the country are
\noutdated and lack high-powered, high frequency long distance
\ncommunications devices.<\/p>\n
Even Haryanto acknowledged yesterday that his small aircraft,
\non which he flew from Singapore to Jakarta on Monday, had to be
\ncontrolled by telecommunications devices in Singapore while he
\nwas 200 miles off the island state heading towards Jakarta.<\/p>\n
\"The high-powered, high frequency long distance communications
\ndevices at Soekarno-Hatta, therefore, need improvement,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Haryanto also said that his office has collected numerous
\nproposals from private firms intending to develop airports, ports
\nand railway and bus stations throughout the country at total
\ncosts of Rp 15.5 trillion ($711 billion).<\/p>\n
The government has been inviting both local and foreign firms
\nto build and expand transportation facilities in the country
\nunder a build, operate and transfer (BOT) scheme.<\/p>\n
The minister said a private company has shown interest in
\nproviding roll-on-and-roll-off ferry service between Jakarta and
\nSurabaya in East Java under a BOT contract to reduce the burden
\nof road transportation between the two cities.<\/p>\n
\"The private firm will cooperate with three state-owned firms
\nto provide the service under a contract to be signed here on
\nSaturday,\" he said, adding that the company will provide two
\nEuropean-made ferries capable of carrying 200 trucks or trailers
\neach for the planned service.<\/p>\n
Merpati<\/p>\n
Meanwhile Director General of Civil Aviation Zainuddin Sikado
\nsaid that Merpati Nusantara will sign an agreement with the
\nstate's aircraft manufacturer IPTN to maintain CN-235s.<\/p>\n
Merpati currently owns a fleet of 89 aircraft, including 14
\nIPTN-made CN-235s. The airline however can operate only nine of
\nthe CN-235s as the other five are grounded due to an assortment
\nof problems, such as lack of spare parts.<\/p>\n
Merpati Nusantara, which will be split next year from its
\nholding company Garuda, has never turned a profit. From 1991 up
\nto now, Merpati suffered a total loss of Rp 129.55 billion
\n($59.43 million), of which Rp 93.45 billion was caused by the
\ngrounding of the CN-235s.<\/p>\n
Sikado said that Merpati will have new domestic routes when it
\nbecomes an independent firm in 1995, so that it can gain more
\nincome.<\/p>\n
Merpati Nusantara plans to use about 100 IPTN airplanes
\ncomprising CN-235s and CN-250s. In procuring 15 CN-235s from 1988
\nto 1993, Merpati received $144.51 million in loans from the
\nstate-owned Bank Bumi Daya and Rp 645.21 million from the
\ngovernment.<\/p>\n
The airline will improve international service early next
\nmonth by serving Singapore from Solo in Central Java and
\nUjungpandang in South Sulawesi.(icn)<\/p>",
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