JAKARTA – A business jet became the first jet aircraft carrying passengers to land at the airport in Indonesia’s future capital Nusantara in East Kalimantan on Sept 12.
Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi and Agrarian and Spatial Planning Deputy Minister Raja Juli Antoni and their entourage were the first passengers to land at the airport.
“Today (Sept 12) we conducted a proving flight with a Cessna Citation Longitude, a jet aircraft with the same classification as a Boeing 737,” Mr Budi said in a statement issued by the Transportation Ministry. “Alhamdulillah [thank God], the aircraft we boarded, landed smoothly and safely at Nusantara airport.”
The Cessna Citation Longitude is operated by the ministry’s Aviation Facilities Calibration Centre.
Manufactured by United States aircraft maker Cessna, the aircraft has a capacity of up to 12 passengers with a maximum range of 6,482km.
Mr Budi said the first landing was impressive and extraordinary because the passengers got to see the Nusantara landscape before landing.
“Before landing, we were presented with a beautiful and spectacular view of Nusantara,” he said. “This is in line with the early development grand design, which retains the greenery.”
He added that the verification and calibration stages of the Nusantara airport had been completed several days ago. The results met aviation security and safety standards, he said.
“The verification was conducted on Sunday and Monday while the calibration was held on Tuesday,” he said. “Therefore, the airport at Nusantara can be used for the arrival and departure of the presidential aircraft while the President is working in Nusantara.”
The airport runway is 2,200m long while the construction of the VIP terminal is 90 per cent complete. The main access road is almost 100 percent complete, while work on other supporting facilities is still ongoing.
Mr Budi was upbeat that the airport would be completed as planned on Dec 31. Meanwhile, pilot Win Warsono said the flight was the inaugural flight to Nusantara airport for a jet aircraft of the class C classification.
The US Federal Aviation Administration classifies class C aircraft as having a maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of between 5,670kg and 136,077kg.
The Cessna Citation Longitude has an MTOW of 17,916kg. Meanwhile, a Boeing 737 is much larger with an MTOW between 49,895kg and 87,995kg, depending on the model.
The crew had received data from the ministry’s Airport Directorate and verification team, which was then input to the aircraft navigation system.
The ministry’s Navigation Directorate and air navigation provider Airnav also evaluated safety and security procedures. “Overall, from our analysis, the runway asphalt has a good grip, the braking action was outstanding,” Captain Win said. “We could stop before 2,200m with normal configuration.”
The aircraft has a landing distance of 966m and take-off distance of 1,466m. THE JAKARTA POST/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
