10 flights affected by haze at Syamsudin Noor International Airport

A total of 10 flights were affected by haze from forest and land fires (karhutla) at Syamsudin Noor International Airport in Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan, on Wednesday morning.

“Six departures and four arrivals were affected,” said Stephanus Millyas Wardana, General Manager of PT Angkasa Pura Indonesia (Persero) Syamsudin Noor International Airport Branch Office, on Wednesday.

The delayed departures began with a flight to Semarang at 06.50 WITA, followed by an arriving flight from Balikpapan at 09.10 WITA.

Millyas explained that safety was the primary consideration for the delays, owing to limited pilot visibility.

As of 06.30 WITA, visibility was only around 200 metres.

Visibility gradually improved to 1,500 metres, allowing aircraft to resume operations.

Millyas said all affected departing flights have now taken off, and arriving flights have also landed at Syamsudin Noor International Airport.

The forest and land fires in Banjarbaru, the capital of South Kalimantan, have worsened in recent days.

Numerous hotspots have emerged, burning land and ultimately affecting flights.

Several vacant plots of land that caught fire are even located within the airport’s ring 1 area, including Tegal Arum in Syamsudin Noor sub-district and Guntung Damar in Guntung Payung sub-district.

Joint officers, assisted by community volunteers, continue to battle the uncontrolled fires daily as they spread from one location to another.