Anak Krakatau eruption disrupts 2,961 flights as transport minister extends closure of seven airports

The eruption of Mount Anak Krakatau has disrupted 2,961 flights in Indonesia, affecting an estimated 341,000 passengers as volcanic ash forced changes to airport operations.

Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said Monday afternoon that 2,339 of the affected flights were domestic and 622 were international. The disruptions included cancellations, delays and rerouted flights.

The Ministry of Transportation extended the closure of seven airports until 11:59 p.m. local time on Monday. The airports are Soekarno-Hatta and Budiarto in Banten, Radin Inten II and Muhammad Taufiq Kiemas in Lampung, Halim Perdanakusuma in Jakarta, Pondok Cabe in Banten and Husein Sastranegara in West Java.

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Why are we being conservative? Because the wind direction is very dynamic. We want to make absolutely sure that the volcanic ash is moving away from the airports around Mount Anak Krakatau.

Dudy said authorities were taking a conservative approach because wind direction remained highly dynamic. Even though paper tests at several locations produced negative results, officials wanted to ensure volcanic ash had moved away from airports near Anak Krakatau.

The ministry will wait for an official assessment from the Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre before deciding whether to reopen the airports. Airport operators must inspect and clean runways, taxiways and aprons, while airlines need to check and clean aircraft that may have been exposed to ash. Dudy said public safety would remain the main consideration.

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We are ensuring that everything proceeds properly, and we do not want to set aside safety considerations.