Best airport in the East now almost history
Best airport in the East now almost history
By Ida Indawati Khouw
Old Batavia was no less attractive than other large cities
around the world at that time. Kemayoran Airport, called "the
best airport in the East", is a reminder of the hustle and bustle
of these days. The authorities have demolished the airport's
buildings, leaving only its tower as a reminder of the past.
Located in Central Jakarta, the tower is suffering from years of
neglect. This is the third article in a planned series about
Jakarta's historical buildings which will run in the Saturday
edition of The Jakarta Post.
JAKARTA (JP): Dutch magazine Het Motorverkeer in 1940 named
Kemayoran Airport "the best airport in the East".
The criteria for this honor was unclear.
But the magazine said the airport had a sophisticated sound
system installed by electronics company Phillips.
Other "modern" equipment, it said, included the bordering
lamps which ran along the 50-meter-wide and 800-meter-long
landing strip to help guide pilots during night flights.
The magazine ranked the airport on the same level as those in
European countries.
"Big airports in Europe have installed sound system equipment.
Kemayoran Airport did the same thing, making its rank no less
than those in Europe," the magazine reported.
Under the title Batavia's Vliegstation Kemajoran (Batavia's
Kemajoran Airport), the magazine wrote the 454-hectare airport
had been operated a long time before its official grand opening
on July 8, 1940.
Today, it is difficult to find traces of this important part
of Indonesia's national heritage.
Only a few notes regarding the airport can be discovered by
those looking for information on the subject.
Even the city's museum and restoration agency, which has the
authority to collect and store information on historical sites
and objects, cannot provide a detailed background of the airport.
The only information they have is that the airport was built
in the early 20th century (during the Dutch colonialism) and its
tower was the first in the country.
However, the agency cannot say which airplane took the maiden
flight to and from the airport.
According to the Dutch magazine, Dutch company KNILM, which
managed the airport, purchased a model of a three-engine Fokker
7B airplane in 1928 to be placed in the airport's compound.
"In September that year the airplane flew to Indie (Indone
sia)," it said.
A plaque was hung at the airport stating that Qantas Empire
Airways Limited of Australia delivered its appreciation to the
Kemayoran Airport management for its cooperation in opening the
route between the airport and Australia in Dec. 10, 1934.
Santoso Kurnia, who worked in the airport between 1968 and
1985, witnessed the hectic activities at Kemayoran Airport during
those days.
The work of the bustling airport staff only ended at 2 in the
morning every day, he said.
"Big aircraft, such as Boeing 747s, Boeing 707s and DC 8s,
landed and took off at the airport. It received passengers from
big airlines, including Lufthansa, Qantas, Pan Am, KLM, Japan
Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Aeroflot," Santoso, who was an
employee of state-run PT Angkasapura I, which managed the airport
after the country gained independence, told The Jakarta Post.
Staff working at the tower were extremely busy in their
efforts to maintain order in the skies.
Since the airport was closed and demolished in 1985, this
piece of the country's glorious past is barely remembered.
The only thing left is the neglected control tower, listed by
the Jakarta administration as one of the city's 132 historic
buildings.
Standing at the top of the tower today you can barely see the
sky through all the newly constructed high-rise buildings,
apartments and the Jakarta Fair complex.
The long grass surrounding the tower illustrates the lack of
attention the government has give to one of our national
heritages.
Many see the tower at the edge of its existence; a relic ready
to be buried.
At one time the tower was to be destroyed to make way for the
Kota Baru Bandar Kemayoran satellite city.
The massive project, under the auspices of the Kemayoran
Development and Control Board managed by the State Secretary, was
to include the ambitious 558-meter-high Jakarta Tower, the
Protection Tower, the Kemayoran Business Center, a
Telecommunications and Development complex, hospitals, schools
and apartments.
The plan was halted by economy difficulties.
Like many old and neglected buildings, the tower has become
notorious as a prime crime area and the site of many a hair-
raising story.
Security guard Nana Rochana said people sometimes saw a large,
black creature pass by the glasses windows at the top of the
tower.
"Crimes also take place quite often here. In July alone two
cases of armed robbery took place here," he said, pointing to a
dimly lit area near the building.
Another security guard, Basiran, said a group of youths
recently saw a "ghost" sitting behind a nearby tree.
Whether you believe these stories or not, the tower does look
like a "house of evil". Its sturdy walls are defaced by
graffiti, while the rest of the building seems to be falling
apart.
Five or six young men who work in the nearby park have made
the tower their shelter.
They sleep, cook, bathe and pray at the tower. At dusk, they
go to the top to enjoy the sunset over Kemayoran and the colorful
kites in the sky.
A few meters from the building, a number of local soccer teams
are busy with their matches.
Just like the authorities, none of them seem aware of the
tower, which was once a proud part of the "best airport in the
East".