Viral Pertamina Tanker Ship Anchors for Several Days in Yogyakarta International Airport Waters
A tanker ship bearing the Pertamina name halted in the waters south of Yogyakarta International Airport (YIA) in Kulon Progo went viral on social media. The vessel experienced engine trouble and had to stop temporarily for repairs.
In posts circulating on social media, the Pertamina ship was seen anchored in the waters south of YIA. The posts indicated the ship had experienced engine trouble since the previous day and remained in the same location on Tuesday morning (10 March).
“This morning monitored from YIA Airport, the Pertamina ship that experienced engine trouble yesterday remains in the same location, which means repairs may not yet be complete or there are other obstacles. Hopefully it can soon resume its journey to Cilacap,” read the caption in a post on the Instagram account @panoramakulonprogo, as seen by detikJogja on Tuesday (10 March 2026).
When contacted, Coordinator of Satlinmas Rescue Istimewa (SRI) Region V Kulon Progo, Aris Widiatmoko, said his team had received information about the ship experiencing trouble since Sunday (8 March) morning.
“According to information from technicians, the report came in Sunday morning that the ship was experiencing trouble,” said Aris when reached this evening.
According to Aris, the ship experienced excessive heat in its engine, prompting the captain to decide to stop temporarily in the waters south of YIA and perform repairs.
“The information is that the engine overheated. So the captain decided to anchor and conduct repairs,” he said.
He explained that on Monday (9 March), fishermen together with one SRI member helped transport technicians and spare parts to repair the ship.
“Yesterday there were fishermen and one of our members who transported technicians and brought spare parts to the ship,” he said.
Aris stated the ship was known to be sailing from the east towards Cilacap. The vessel was carrying aviation fuel that was planned to support aviation fuel requirements.
“The information is that the ship came from the east heading to Cilacap. It was planned to load aviation fuel there,” he explained.
After repairs were completed, the ship was scheduled to resume its journey this evening.
“Earlier it already warmed up the engine. (Information from technicians) Repairs are complete today and it will resume its journey this evening,” he said.
Pertamina’s Statement
Meanwhile, Pertamina Patra Niaga assured that the technical disruption on the ship would not affect national aviation fuel availability. Corporate Secretary of Pertamina Patra Niaga, Roberth Marchelino Verieza, stated that MT Sungai Gerong is one of the fleet used to support aviation fuel distribution domestically.
“Currently MT Sungai Gerong is undergoing technical repairs in the waters around Yogyakarta as part of efforts to maintain fleet operational reliability,” said Roberth in a written statement.
He assured the process would not disrupt aviation fuel supply because Pertamina had deployed another ship to support distribution.
“Pertamina has deployed another ship to transport aviation fuel, namely MT Commodore One which is already in Cilacap and will be followed by MT Sei Pakning which is currently en route to Cilacap,” he said.
According to him, all handling processes were carried out prioritising safety standards and operational reliability to ensure energy distribution continued smoothly.
“From the marine distribution side, Pertamina Patra Niaga has 345 ships of various types on standby to ensure marine distribution runs smoothly during the Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr task force period,” he explained.