Commercial flights barred during Bandung summit
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung
All commercial flights will be barred from landing in and taking off from Bandung airport on April 24, when at least 55 heads of state and delegates from 105 participating countries arrive for the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Asia-Africa Conference.
"The Husein Sastranegara Airport will be used to park eight prepared aircraft to transport the main state guests, including the Indonesian President and Vice President," said West Java Deputy Governor Nu'man Abdul Hakim, who is chairman of the summit's provincial organizing committee, on Tuesday.
The aircraft will include six Boeing 737-200 that will each carry 189 guests, including senior officials from participating countries. The other two aircraft will be for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Yusuf Kalla.
Nu'man said the committee had also prepared a backup Boeing aircraft as a contingency measure.
Each head of state, he said, is expected to take around 11 members but for the six-hour Golden Jubilee celebrations in Bandung on April 24, the committee will restrict the number of delegates per country to 20 people.
The flights carrying the state guests will fly from Jakarta starting at 6:30 a.m., at 20 minute intervals. Upon arrival at Bandung airport, the guests will go directly to Savoy Homann Hotel, which is only 50 meters from Gedung Merdeka, where the Golden Jubilee celebrations will be held.
"While waiting for all the guests to arrive, the arriving guests will be presented with traditional food and shown a mini exhibition of West Java handicrafts," Nu'man said.
He added that a fleet of 30 buses to take the guests from the airport to the hotel will come from Jakarta the day before the event.
Chairman of Bandung city organizing committee, Sukarno, said that for security reasons, all shops and busy shopping districts where the delegation would pass, would be closed during the event.
The local committee has also prepared three alternative routes to transport the state guests from Husein Sastranegara Airport to Savoy Homann Hotel and Gedung Merdeka.
The first route, he said, passes Jl. Padjadjaran-Cicendo- Wastukancana-Aceh-Merdeka-Tamblong-Asia Afrika, and the second goes through Jl. Padjadjaran-Wastukancana-Braga-Naripan-Lembong- Tamblong-Asia Afrika, while the third route passes Jl. Padjajaran-Cihampelas Bawah-Wastukancana-Martadinata (Riau)- Lembong-Tamblong-Asia Afrika.
Nu'man said that if bad weather made it impossible to fly the state guests, they would be transported by train from Gambir railway station in Central Jakarta.
"We have also prepared 10 trains with a capacity of 400 people as an alternative," he said.