Domestic air passenger numbers rise 24.19 percent
Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The number of airline passengers on domestic flights surged 24.19 percent to 7.67 million passengers between January and September this year compared to the same period last year, signaling a revival of the country's airline industry.
The Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) said that the highest volume of traffic for domestic passengers was generated by Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta, which saw an increase of about 35 percent in domestic passengers between January and September 2001.
Indonesian Air Carriers Association (Inaca) chairman Wahyu Hidayat admitted over the weekend that he was amazed at the increase.
"I don't understand myself why it (domestic air travel) surged. We are not out of the (economic) crisis, yet people are opting to travel by air," he told The Jakarta Post.
Wahyu said that the entrance of new airlines into the domestic market over the last couple of years and tight price competition between airlines could be one reason for the increase.
He said that customers now had a wider range of airlines to choose from and a choice in airline ticket pricing.
"For example, a return flight to Medan (North Sumatra) recently fell to as low as Rp 699,000 (about US$66.6) compared to Garuda's price to the same destination of more than Rp 1 million," Wahyu said, referring to the national flag carrier, Garuda Indonesia.
The government's decision to liberalize its policy on privately-owned airlines over recent years, has resulted in the entrance of seven new airlines, in addition to the five already in existence.
The new airlines are PT Dirgantara Air Service (DAS), PT Air Mark Indonesia, PT Air Wagon International (Awair), PT Bayu Indonesia Air, PT Lion Airlines, PT Jatayu Air, and PT Star Air.
They join the already established PT Garuda Indonesia, PT Merpati Nusantara, PT Mandala Airlines, PT Bouraq Indonesia, and PT Pelita Air Service.
Decentralization might be another reason for the increase, Wahyu said, with the center of business and the circulation of money no longer focused on Jakarta.
"The growth centers are shifting to the provinces, so everybody's starting to move to the provinces (for business)," he said.
Wahyu said that the terrorist attacks on the United States, which had dampened Americans' appetites for traveling by air, had not had the same effect on Indonesians.
"The attacks have had no impact on domestic travelers. Most importantly, the price of tickets has not gone up," he said.
Domestic passengers will likely increase further as the nation braces for the annual exodus for the religious holidays later this month.
Director General of Air Transportation Soenaryo Yosopratomo had earlier said that domestic traffic would likely increase by 20 percent.
In contrast, the number of passengers on international flights between January and September 2001 dropped 0.18 percent to 3.34 million passengers due to continued security uncertainties in the country and the fallout from the U.S. terrorist attacks.
International passengers passing through the capital dropped by 4.04 percent to only 1.7 million people compared to the January to September period last year.