Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Transporstation


Balikpapan's airport is the Sepinggan International Airport. This is the second busiest Indonesian airport after Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and permits large aircraft.

Airlines currently using the airport are Lion Air, Merpati Airlines, Batavia Air, Kartika Airlines, Sriwijaya Air (domestic routes), and Garuda Indonesia, Air Asia, and Silk Air (International routes).

The airport is one of the five principle sites in Indonesia where Muslims begin the pilgrimage to Mecca, the "Hajj". Between 1996 and 1997, the airport served over 4,500 East Kalimantan pilgrims, and from 1997 to 1998, it served pilgrims from East Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, Central Sulawesi, and North Sulawesi.

Other than the airport, Balikpapan also has a seaport called "Semayang" which has many destinations to Surabaya, Makasssar, Jakarta, Pare-Pare, and Manado. in 1990s, transportation using ships was very popular. But after the booming of so many new airlines with very cheap price, people now prefer travelling using airplanes to the ships.

The ferry is also another alternative for travelling to other places within coastal areas in East Kalimantan, such as Penajam.

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