Indonesia: Baru Jari eruption forces Bali airport closure

The Jakarta Post 4 Nov 15;

Volcanic ash from the eruption of Mount Baru Jari , A sub-volcano of Mount Rinjani, in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, forced authorities to close I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali on Tuesday evening.

Trikora Harjo, General manager of state-owned airport operator Angkasa Pura I (AP I), which operates the facility, said that the closure was based on a Notice to Airmen (Notam) No. A2468/15 issued by the transportation ministry.

“The closure was from 7:30 until 11:30 p.m.,” Trikora explained.

At least nine international flights connecting Australia and Bali have been canceled since Tuesday morning, affecting 1,480 passengers.

The cancellations consisted of four flights operated by Australian low-cost airline Jetstar Airways and five flights of Australia’s second-biggest carrier Virgin Australia airlines.


Mt. Rinjani eruption forces flight cancellations in Bali
thejakartapost.com 3 Nov 15;

Flights to and from Bali were canceled on Tuesday following the eruption of Mount Rinjani on the nearby island of Lombok, East Nusa Tenggara.

Ngurah Rai International Airport was temporarily closed from 7:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., affecting 11 international and 14 domestic flights, an airport official said.

“Flights to Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong have been canceled,” the airport’s operations manager Ngurah Ardita told thejakartapost.com on Tuesday night.

Affected airlines included Virgin Australia, Jetstar, Cathay Pacific and KLM, according to Ardita. “We will reevaluate the situation tonight,” he added.

Meanwhile, seven villages in North Lombok were reportedly covered with ash, while the West Nusa Tenggara Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) had prepared some 4,000 masks for affected villagers, .com reported.

Agency head H. Azhar said that the volcano had been on alert status since erupting last week. “The BPBD has also prepared some evacuation scenarios for the affected areas,” he said.

The latest disruption comes three months after a major eruption at Mount Raung on Java led to widespread travel chaos at Bali’s airport, leaving passengers stranded for days. (iik)


Bali airport reopened
thejakartapost.com 5 Nov 15;

Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport reopened on Thursday afternoon after ash cleared from the sky following recent eruptions of Mount Barujari in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara.

Trikora Harjo, general manager of Ngurah Rai airport’s operator PT Angkasa Pura I, said airport re-opened at 2:30 p.m. local time and the decision was based on information from the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) and from the Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) in Darwin, Australia.

"They informed us that the wind was now taking volcanic ash […] to the south, away from Bali,” he said as reported by state news agency Antara.

Trikora said the authorities also took into consideration the first-hand visual evidence of less volcanic ash being visable near the airport.

Flight operations cannot proceed immediately, however, because it will take the airport at least two hours to get ready.

"We have to clean the apron and the runways. Airlines also need to clean their aircrafts," he said.

Angkasa Pura also needed to prepare general airport systems including goods check-ins and immigration checks.

No information has been given yet about which flights and airlines would depart and arrive first in Bali as airport authorities still need to coordinate with air navigation authorities and airlines.

The airport was closed on Tuesday leaving more than 6,000 domestic and international passengers stranded. Authorities initially decided to close the airport until Friday due to intensified volcanic activity at Mt. Barujari, located inside the caldera of Mount Rinjani.

Thousands of passengers welcomed the announcement of the opening of the airport on Thursday.

"Finally, after waiting all day, we can go home," said Hugh Millard, a Malaysia Airlines passenger flying home to London. (rin)(+)