NEW AIRPORT TO BE CONSTRUCTED IN TAMBRAUW, WEST PAPUA

Jakarta, 28 Dzulqa’dah 1435/23 September 2014 (MINA) – Directorate General of Civil Aviation Eddy Santoso Wibowo announced that the Tambrauw district of West Papua Province will soon have an airport in Werur, which will be relatively closer to the Raja Ampat tourism destination.

“The construction will start next year,” Santoso noted after the signing an agreement between the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and the local administration of Tambrauw on the construction and development of Werur Airport here on Monday.

Santoso remarked that the agreement to provide transportation facility in one of the regions in West Papua is in its nascent stage, Antara News quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

“The construction work on the project will begin next year and will be completed within about three years. We will survey the grounds. The construction is initiated with the signing of a memorandum of understanding and then the environmental impact analysis will be done,” he remarked.

Santoso stated that the Werur Airport will also trigger the growth of the local economy.

He explained that the government will provide Rp30 billion, or about US$2.5 million, from the state budget for the construction of the airfield.

In the meantime, Gabriel Asem, the head of Tambrauw district, remarked that the administration has budgeted Rp9 billion, or about US$752 thousand, for the construction of the airport and Rp3 billion, or about US$250 thousand, for acquiring the land for the airport.

The airport needs a land area of 200 hectares, including for its runway, taxiway, and the apron. The area of the runway is 500 x 23 meters, while the runway strip is 520 x 60 meters.

The Werur Airport will facilitate the locals and tourists to reach Raja Ampat and other locations in West Papua.

So far, people travelling to West Papua have used air transportation via the Dominique Edward Osok Airport in Sorong.(T/P009/R03)

Mi’raj Isamic News Agency (MINA)