Haze forces Garuda to stop in Palembang
Haze forces Garuda to stop in Palembang
23 September 2009
published by www.thejakartapost.com
Indonesia —
A Garuda Indonesia airplane leaving Jakarta for Jambi made an unusual stopover at Palembangs Sultan Mahmud Badarudin II Airport on Wednesday morning due to thick haze.
Dwi Putra Jaya, junior air traffic manager at Garudas Jambi office, told Antara state news agency the haze had reduced visibility to only 500 meters, or one fourth the minimum standard.
He said the pilot decided to land at Palembangs Sultan Thaha Saifudin Airport as he was not sure about weather conditions in Jambi. He added other airline companies; Batavia Air, Mandala Air, Sriwijaya Air, Lion Air and Kartika Air shrugged off the reduced visibility.
The Garuda plane left for Jambi later in the day after visibility at Jambis airport increased to 3,000 meters.