Billions for land appropriation

MEDAN, North Sumatra: A total of Rp 144 billion (US$4.1 million) has been paid out for the appropriation of 1,362 hectares of land in Kuala Namu, Deli Serdang, that will be developed into a new airport for the province.

Antara quoted yesterday Hari Sirjono, the head of the local branch of the state-owned airport management company, that manages the current Polonia Airport, as saying Tuesday that all that is needed now is the government's approval for the construction of the new airport to start.

Following the Garuda Indonesia Airbus crash near Medan on Sept. 26 which killed all 234 people on board, criticism grew that the Polonia Airport was no longer adequate to cope with increasing flight activities. (swe)