Jenderal Ahmad Yani International Airport is an airport serving the city of

Semarang Semarang (Javanese script, Javanese: , ''Kutha Semarang'') is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Netherlands, Dutch Dutch East Indies, colonial era, and is still an important regio ...

, in

Central Java Central Java (, ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogya ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. The airport is named in honor of

Ahmad Yani Ahmad Yani (19 June 1922 – 1 October 1965) was the Commander of the Indonesian Army, and was killed by members of the 30 September Movement during an attempt to kidnap him from his house. Early life Ahmad Yani was born in Jenar, Purwore ...

(1922–1965), who is a

National Hero of Indonesia National Hero of Indonesia () is the highest-level Orders, decorations, and medals of Indonesia, title awarded in Indonesia. It is posthumously given by the Government of Indonesia for actions which are deemed to be heroic, defined as "actual de ...

. , it was one of the fastest-growing airports in the world by growth percentage. The airport is operated by PT Angkasa Pura I, a state enterprise of the Indonesian

Ministry of Transportation A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government a ...

that manages airports in the eastern part of the country. The airport used to be a military airbase owned by the TNI (Armed Forces of Indonesia) until 1966, when the airport was declared open to domestic commercial flights, while continuing to operate as an airbase for the

Indonesian Army The Indonesian Army ( (TNI-AD), ) is the army, land branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It has an estimated strength of 300,400 active personnel. The history of the Indonesian Army has its roots in 1945 when the (TKR) "People's Se ...

. The area is commonly known as Kalibanteng, hence it was commonly known as Kalibanteng Airbase. The new floating terminal of the airport was officially opened by Indonesian President

Joko Widodo Joko Widodo (; born 21 June 1961), often known mononymously as Jokowi, is an Indonesian politician, engineer, and businessman who served as the seventh president of Indonesia from 2014 to 2024. Previously a member of the Indonesian Democratic ...

on 7 June 2018. On 2 April 2024, the Ministry of Transportation revoked the international status of the airport. Later on 26 April 2025, the Ministry of Transportation reinstated the international status of the airport.

History

Ahmad Yani Airport used to be a military airbase for the

. It was opened for commercial flights after a joint decree between Chief of the Air Staff, Minister of Transport, and the Army Chief of staff on 31 August 1966. On 1 October 1995, management was transferred to PT Angkasa Pura I. This marked the start of the fully commercial use of the airport. Expansion began in 2004, done in phases starting with the addition to the length of the runway to accommodate the safer landing of larger aircraft. The airport gained its international status in August 2004 with its inaugural flight from

to Singapore, as mentioned in the Minister's Decree No. 64/2004 on 10 August 2004. However, due to the

global recession A global recession is a recession that affects many countries around the world—that is, a period of global economic slowdown or declining economic output. Definitions The International Monetary Fund defines a global recession as "a decline ...

, the Semarang-Singapore route operated by Garuda was discontinued. Batavia Air took over this route in November 2009. However, Batavia Air ceased operations on 31 January 2013 as an outcome of a petition for bankruptcy on 30 January 2013.

Development

Ahmad Yani Airport used to have a terminal to the south of the runway, with one arrival and departure gate each for domestic and international flights. The old terminal had a total area of 6,708 square meters in size. Facilities include souvenir shops, food outlets, bank, money changer, hotel and travel booking offices, taxi and rental car services. The airport is in the coastal area of Maron beach in the West Semarang district, which is prone to flooding and abrasion. Central Java Government announced plans to expand the airport in 2004 which include the extension of the runway from 1,850 m to 2,560 m. On 17 June 2014 Angkasa Pura I and military officials signed an agreement allowing the use of military land for 30 years and implementing the expansion project.

New terminal

On 17 June 2014, groundbreaking was done to build a new terminal for the airport. On 6 June 2018, the new terminal was opened for the public. It is the first floating terminal in Indonesia, which has an area of 58,652 square metres, nearly 10 times larger in size than the old terminal. After the new terminal was opened, the old terminal was returned to the army. The new terminal is also equipped with three jet bridges. The new terminal is designed on an eco-friendly theme, to register the terminal for green building certification. The unique passenger terminal built on top of a swamp, set to turn the airport into Indonesia's very first floating airport. The construction of the new terminal uses Earth-conscious materials and makes use of its surrounding swamps. The new terminal mainly uses glass materials to acquire more natural lighting inside the terminal, which saves electricity. Another eco-friendly design element is the use of

reverse osmosis Reverse osmosis (RO) is a water purification process that uses a partially permeable membrane, semi-permeable membrane to separate water molecules from other substances. RO applies pressure to overcome osmotic pressure that favors even distribu ...

to provide clean water from rainwater and seawater, which is processed in a tank underneath the airport terminal. There are water ponds around the airport that provides the raw material for osmosis and control water levels to prevent flooding during the rainy season. Solar cells also contribute to the airport's street lighting. The new terminal has an interior garden, as well as a mangrove forest. There is a multisensory waiting room specifically for children with

autism Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...

, which is equipped with floor and wall mattresses, balls, beanbags, aquatic bubble tubes, colour changing LEDs, laser fingers, and vestibular boards. The multisensory room is the first-ever sensory room at any Indonesian airport and also the first in the Asia-Pacific.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Traffic and statistics

Traffic

Statistics

Accidents and incidents

* On 1 May 1981, Vickers Viscount 832 PK-RVN of

Mandala Airlines Tigerair Mandala (formerly Mandala Airlines) was a low-cost carrier headquartered in Jakarta, Indonesia. It was founded in 1969 as a full service airline by members of the Indonesian military. In 2006, as part of the ongoing reforms, the militar ...

carrying 44 passengers and crew was damaged beyond economic repair when it departed the runway on landing, causing the starboard and nose gear to collapse. * On 18 October 1992, Merpati Nusantara Airlines Flight 5601 operating a CASA/IPTN CN-235-10 PK-MNN crashed on a domestic flight from Semarang to

Bandung Bandung is the capital city of the West Java province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, the city is the List of Indonesian cities by population, fourth-most populous city and fourth largest city in Indonesia after Jakarta, Surabay ...

. The aircraft impacted Mount Puntang near

Mount Papandayan Mount Papandayan is a complex stratovolcano, located in Garut Regency, to the southeast of the city of Bandung in West Java, Indonesia. It is about to the southwest of the town of Garut. At the summit, there are four large craters which conta ...

and burst into flames, killing all 27 passengers and four crew aboard. This is the worst disaster involving a CASA/IPTN CN-235. * On 30 November 1994, A Fokker 28 Mk 4000 PK-GKU of

Merpati Nusantara Airlines PT Merpati Nusantara Airlines, operated as Merpati Nusantara Airlines, was an airline in Indonesia based in Central Jakarta, Jakarta. It operated scheduled domestic services to more than 25 destinations in Indonesia, as well as scheduled intern ...

operating on flight 422 from

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

touched down during heavy rain far along the runway. Then it overran the runway and fell into a ditch, causing it to break into three pieces. All 85 passengers and crew survived. * On 25 December 2016,

Wings Air PT Wings Abadi Airlines, operating as Wings Air, is a scheduled commuter passenger low-cost airline based in Jakarta, Indonesia. The airline operates out of Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport in Makassar as well as several other airports aro ...

flight IW1896 from

, using an

ATR 72-600 The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop, short-haul regional airliner developed and produced in France and Italy by aircraft manufacturer ATR. The number "72" in its name is derived from the aircraft's typical standard seating capacity of 72 pass ...

(registration PK-WGW) suffered a landing accident. At the time of the approach, it was raining at the airport with

Cumulonimbus Cumulonimbus () is a dense, towering, vertical cloud, typically forming from water vapor condensing in the lower troposphere that builds upward carried by powerful buoyant air currents. Above the lower portions of the cumulonimbus the water va ...

clouds in the area at 1500 feet. Following a

VOR/DME In radio navigation, a VOR/DME is a radio beacon that combines a VHF omnidirectional range (VOR) with a distance-measuring equipment (DME). The VOR allows the receiver to measure its bearing to or from the beacon, while the DME provides the sla ...

approach, the aircraft landed on runway 13 and bounced; the right main gear then folded inwards causing the aircraft to veer right. The aircraft stopped on the right runway edge near taxiway D tilting to the right. All 68 passengers and four crew survived.

Ground transportation

Bus

From 2005 until 2007 there was a shuttle bus service connecting the airport to the city center and Semarang Old Town. However, due to protests from local airport taxi operators, this service was terminated. In 2013, Trans Semarang, a bus rapid transit (BRT) operator, started to serve Ahmad Yani Airport. Only one route went through the airport but all the available routes are interconnected. The expected interval is 15 to 30 minutes between buses unless there is a traffic jam.

Car and taxi

There are airport taxis provided and the reception available right in the arrival terminal. Some public taxis in Semarang cannot take passengers in the airport terminal.

Awards

For the third consecutive year, Ahmad Yani Airport won the Cleanest Airport Award among 9 Class B Airports in Indonesia in 2013.

Gallery

File:AhmadYaniTerminal.jpg, The old terminal building File:SemarangAirportBuildings.jpg, The new terminal building and control tower

References

External links

PT. Angkasa Pura I: Ahmad Yani Airport

Ahmad Yani Airport website
* {{Portal, Aviation, Indonesia Buildings and structures in Semarang Airports in Central Java Transport in Semarang Military installations of Indonesia Airports established in 1966