Praya, Central Lombok (ANTARA) - State airport operator PT Angkasa Pura I (AP I) at Lombok International Airport, West Nusa Tenggara, reported flight activities unaffected by the eruption of Mount Merapi straddling Sleman in Yogyakarta and Central Java, as hot clouds were headed southeast.

"All flight activities are still normal," Public Relations of PT AP I at Lombok International Airport Arif Haryanto stated in Praya, West Nusa Tenggara, on Thursday.

Haryanto later remarked that domestic flight routes at Lombok Airport were still operating, specifically flights from Jakarta, Surabaya, Bali, Makassar, Sumbawa, and Bima.

Meanwhile, no international flights were scheduled until now, except for logistics flights for the MotoGP series at the Mandalika Circuit, Lombok, on March 18-20, 2022.

"There are six domestic flight routes at Lombok Airport. Meanwhile, there are no international routes," he noted.

Haryanto later remarked that the number of passenger movements ahead of the Mandalika MotoGP event was still the same as the previous day, averaging four thousand per day during arrival and departure.

"The average number of arriving and departing passengers is still four thousand per day," he stated.

Currently, the condition of passengers at Lombok Airport is relatively normal. No significant increase was recorded in early March.

Haryanto is optimistic that the central government's new regulation, which has begun to relax the requirements for domestic flights at airports and ports without antigen swab tests or RT-PCR for fully vaccinated passengers, would be able to increase the number of passengers at Lombok Airport.

"For now, there is no significant increase in the number of passengers at Lombok Airport," he added.

Earlier, an increase in activity was recorded at Mount Merapi as indicated by the emergence of avalanche hot clouds reaching as far as five thousand meters. All residents of Kalitengah Lor, Glagaharjo, and Cangkringan were evacuated to the Glagaharjo Village Hall and urged to remain vigilant.


Translator: Akhyar Rosidi, Resinta S
Editor: Sri Haryati
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