The Kertajati Airport Footprint: From Dormant to US-Sought Asian Aircraft MRO Hub

KERTAJATI, Indonesia — The latest development from Indonesia’s aviation sector concerns the defence portfolio. Defence Minister (Menhan) RI has confirmed that President Prabowo Subianto has received an offer from the United States to make Kertajati Airport in Majalengka an MRO hub for Asia’s heavy transport aircraft, the C-130 Hercules. The offer, attributed to the US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, was raised during a Working Meeting (Raker) between Commission I of the DPR, the Ministry of Defence (Kemhan), and the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) on Tuesday, 19 May 2026. Brig. Gen. Rico Ricardo Sirait of Kemhan said the selection of Kertajati considered ample land and adequate aviation facilities. Why is Kertajati being eyed as an Asia-wide maintenance facility for aircraft? Here are the facts and history. Feasibility studies for this project began in 2003, followed by site designation in 2005. At that time, the West Java Provincial Government even stated it would finance construction via APBD. The plan stalled for several years before the central government stepped in. The project was then supported by funding from APBN, with land acquisition and initial construction starting in 2014. Not long after, Kertajati Airport was listed as a National Strategic Project (PSN), accelerating its development. Physical construction took place from 2015 to 2017. The airport officially began operations on 24 May 2018, marked by the first landing of a presidential aircraft. At that time, the runway of 2,500 metres was already capable of handling medium-sized aircraft. In terms of investment, the construction of Kertajati Airport cost around Rp2.6 trillion, supported by the government and private sector participants. Its management is now under PT Bandarudara Internasional Jawa Barat (BIJB), a state-owned enterprise established to oversee airport operations.