Between meeting -- planes, trains and automobiles
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
How do you transport 60 of the most important people in Asia and Africa?
Arranging safe, reliable and fitting transportation, both for within Jakarta and for the day trip to Bandung, West Java is one of the summit organizer's main responsibilities.
In 1955 a total of 143 sedans, 30 taxis and 20 buses were allocated for the conference. These numbers would be insufficient for the 2005 summit, given that there are five times more delegates attending.
In times of "affluence" the government purchased brand new limousines for its esteemed guests, such as for the 1992 Non- Aligned Movement Summit. However, these days renting seems to be the preferred option.
To transport VVIPs, organizers of the summit have rented a total of 268 vehicles from the Indomobil Group. According to reports, under the arrangement organizers will be lent the vehicles free-of-charge, but will cover insurance costs for the loan period.
These vehicles include 60 Volvo S80, 80 Nissan X-Trail, 120 Nissan Terrano and eight buses.
This does not include other vehicles used for senior officials.
No additional security devices, such as bullet-proof windows, have been installed.
Indomobil believes that once the vehicles are returned after the summit and sold they will have prestige in the people's eyes as they were once used by a head of state.
For the one-day junket to Bandung, about 180 kilometers south of Jakarta, heads of state will be flown in using a chartered Garuda Indonesia airplane.
Five Boeing 737-300s have been readied by the national airline and outfitted to meet the needs of Sunday's special trip. The usually 110 seat (16 business and 94 economy class) airplane has been modified so that it has 32 business class seats and 60 economy class ones.
Garuda Indonesia has also trained experienced staff specifically for the 20 minute flight to Bandung. They include 14 cockpit crew, 36 cabin staff and 48 ground staff.
For the carrier, the trip also commemorates their achievement in transporting delegates to the 1955 conference, when Garuda flew DC-3 propeller planes.
Other officials will make their way to Bandung one day in advance via the popular railway route, which takes about three hours.
Despite calls from Bandung officials for tourists to refrain from traveling to Bandung -- especially using the main roads of the city -- on Sunday, trains from Jakarta to the West Java capital are fully booked from Thursday to Monday. A combination of the summit and the long weekend that starts on Friday may be one reason for the demand for tickets.