Seven airports in Indonesia, including the main international airport serving the capital Jakarta, have extended their operational suspensions until at least 6pm local time as volcanic activity at Mount Anak Krakatau disrupts air travel across the archipelago.
The eruption has forced airlines to cancel or delay around 2,300 flights, affecting some 270,000 passengers, according to Indonesia’s Ministry of Transportation.
Angkasa Pura, the airport operator, said authorities had suspended flights at several airports because of increased explosive activity at Mount Anak Krakatau. It urged passengers to check their flight status regularly with their airlines.
Mount Anak Krakatau, meaning “Child of Krakatau”, entered an explosive phase on Saturday, when lava and other pyroclastic flows began emerging from the volcano. People reported hearing explosions hundreds of kilometres away.
Indonesia’s volcanology agency reported further explosions yesterday and said the likelihood of another eruption remained high today.
The agency warned that a potential eruption could eject incandescent rocks accompanied by large quantities of volcanic ash. Lava flows could also pose a danger if explosive activity resumes and continues.
Two of the airports that will remain closed serve the wider Jakarta area, including one also used by the Indonesian Air Force.
Around 1,000 flights were scheduled to depart from or arrive at Jakarta’s main international airport, adding to the disruption caused by cancellations, delays and flight diversions.
Anak Krakatau sits in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra. The volcano has shown intermittent activity since it emerged during the past century from the caldera created by the catastrophic 1883 eruption of Krakatau.
The 1883 eruption ranks among the deadliest volcanic disasters in history, with estimates putting the death toll at around 35,000 people.
In 2018, the collapse of parts of Anak Krakatau triggered a tsunami that killed 429 people and displaced thousands of residents.
Indonesia, a vast Southeast Asian archipelago, lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, where intense tectonic activity produces frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
