More than 200 aircraft landed daily at the Banda Aceh air port of the tsunami-hit Aceh province which have been causing air traffic jam, a minister said in Banda Aceh on Friday.
The flights rose sharply after the tsunami disaster on Dec. 26 leveled parts of the province and killed more than 110,000 people there so far.
"Normally there are eight to 10 flights per day, however, more than 200 aircraft come to Banda Aceh (the capital of the province)today. As the facility is so limited, there is serious traffic jam," Indonesian Minister of Information and Communication Sofjan Jalil said.
To solve the problem, the Indonesian government opened Sabang airport, in Sabang island in northern part of the province, only 10 minutes flight to Banda Aceh.
In addition, the Indonesian government is cooperated with the Malaysian government, which opened three of its airports for the international relief efforts in Aceh province, and planned to open another airport in Lankawi, Malaysia.
"Right now, we have a good cooperation with Malaysia," he said.
He said currently some commercial flights delayed for some three hours.
The authorities had to direct the planes to Medan airport, the capital city of North Sumatra province, or tiny island of Batam, close to Singapore, when the traffic jam became very serious, he said.
Today, airplanes are still the most available transportation to distribute aids to survivors in the province.
Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla has ordered the authorities to place priority on the aircraft carrying assistance to Aceh province and put commercial flights to province of Aceh and north Sumatra on the back burner.
(Xinhua News Agency January 15, 2005)
