TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - PT Angkasa Pura II (Persero), or AP II, will expand the Silangit International Airport, North Sumatra. AP II wanted to welcome more tourists keen on spending their vacations in Lake Toba.

"Silangit Airport is the main access for tourists to travel to Lake Toba that is designated as one of the 'New Bali' destinations. Hence, AP II is committed to maintaining and increasing the level of service at Silangit Airport through various infrastructure developments," AP II President Director Muhammad Awaluddin stated in Jakarta in his official statement on Saturday.

Awaluddin highlighted the need for terminal expansion since currently, the number of passengers had almost touched existing capacity.

"The terminal at Silangit Airport must be expanded to accommodate one million passengers per year. Since the Silangit Airport has been revitalized and direct flights operating from Jakarta, tourism in the Lake Toba region has indeed grown quite rapidly," he pointed out.

The aircraft passenger terminal at Silangit Airport will be expanded five times, or from the current 2,500 square meters to 10,499 square meters. The terminal's expansion will enable Silangit Airport to accommodate up to one million passengers per year, from currently only some 500 thousand passengers.

The number of aircraft passengers in Silangit does continue to grow significantly every year. In 2016, some 155,214 passengers were recorded, and the figure then rose 82 percent in 2017 to 282,586 people, while in 2018, the number of passengers reached 425,476, up 50.56 percent as compared to that recorded in 2017.

Air passengers headed to Silangit Airport in North Tapanuli are mostly domestic and foreign tourists.

ANTARA