Indonesian Drone Pilot Association ready to assist in forest and land fire handling

The Indonesian Drone Pilot Association (APDI) is giving special attention to two major disasters in the country: the earthquake in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) and forest and land fires in several provinces across Indonesia.

Banjarmasin (ANTARA) - The chairman of the central Indonesian Drone Pilot Association (APDI), M Akbar Marwan, said his organisation is ready to assist the government in handling forest and land fires (karhutla).

“It happens that our association has a mitigation and disaster division; we are always ready to contribute whenever a disaster occurs in this country,” he said in Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan, on Sunday.

Akbar was attending a drone camp organised by the South Kalimantan regional APDI at the Banua Botanical Gardens in the South Kalimantan Governor’s office complex in Banjarbaru on 22-23 August 2026.

According to him, APDI is giving special attention to two major disasters in the country: the earthquake in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) and forest and land fires in several provinces in Indonesia.

“Including here in South Kalimantan Province,” said Akbar.

He said the contribution APDI can make is by flying drones to map the occurrence of forest and land fires.

“In essence, our contribution can be mitigation and other things,” he said.

Facing the disaster of forest and land fires, Akbar hopes everyone can be patient, because shared grief must also be tackled together.

“It cannot be done partially; it must be done together, starting from regulators and the community, working together to protect and change our patterns of land management so that we do not clear land by burning but in a good way,” he explained.

So far, Akbar revealed, APDI always coordinates with the National Disaster Management Agency (BPBN) down to the regional level and with Basarnas for all disaster management efforts.