President To Inaugurate Int'l Airport In E Kalimantan

Samarinda, E.Kalimantan, Aug 27 (Antara) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will inaugurate the International Airport of Sultan Aji Muhammad Sulaiman Sepinggan, Balikpapan, in East Kalimantan Province and three other airports in the border areas. "The schedule cannot be ascertained yet because the opening date is still tentative. However, it is planned that the president will visit East Kalimantan during mid-September 2014," Head of East Kalimantan Provincial Transport Office Zairin Zain announced here on Wednesday. The other three airports are Long Bawan in Nunukan District; Long Ampung in Malinau District, North Kalimantan Province, which is a provincial division of East Kalimantan; and Datah Dawai Airport in Mahulu District. These three airports are located in the land area bordered with eastern Malaysia. The investment for the construction of the new terminal of Sepinggan Airport has reached Rp1.6 trillion or around US$136.5 million by PT Angkasa Pura, the state-owned airport services company. Meanwhile, the cost for the construction of the three airports in the border areas of East Kalimantan is Rp400 billion or around US$34.2 million. According to Zairin, the existence of the airports at the border areas will support people who have limited access to transportation, and so improve their economic situation. He noted that the availability of transportation infrastructure in the border areas will allow people to buy basic necessities at more affordable price. The reason for high price of essential commodities in the border areas is difficulty of access. The development of Long Bawan Airport is a project for the development of East Kalimantan, especially the border areas, in order to meet the needs of basic infrastructure of the people. The capacity of the runways at the three airports has been improved, so that wide-bodied aircraft type ATR 72 or C 130 Hercules could land. This will have an impact on increasing the intensity of flight in the border areas of East Kalimantan. Long Bawan Airport has a runway 900 meters long and 30 meters wide, while Long Ampung Airport has a runway 840 meters long and 30 meters wide. After construction, Datah Dawai Airport currently has a runway 1,600 meters long and 30 meters wide.