Anak Krakatau Eruption Traps 270,000 Travelers Abroad as Indonesian Airports Remain Shut

Halim Perdanakusuma, a smaller facility serving civil and military aviators, continues to stay closed until services are restored.

Snaking queues developed in the exit area of Jakarta’s Soekarno‑Hatta International Airport on Monday as displaced travelers sought refunds and updates on future flight availability.

Finna, whose planned Sunday morning departure from Malang to Jakarta faced repeated rescheduling, recollected that the concourse was extremely congested while passengers awaiting later flights struggled to learn their next move.

“It was very crowded because early‑flight passengers had piled up, whereas those slated for later departures remained uncertain about their situation,” the 46‑year‑old told BBC Indonesian.

“Passengers lingered near the flight‑status monitors hoping for timely announcements.”

Choosing not to cope with the uncertainty, Finna spent a night on consecutive intercity trains before finally arriving in Jakarta at 03:00 on Monday.

Jo Shaw, a visitor from her conservation charity Save the Rhino International travelling through Indonesia, observed that attendees were actively searching for alternative ways to reach their destinations.

Shaw’s team cancelled their plans to camp near Java’s Ujung Kulon National Park after authorities raised the alert level for the nearby Anak Krakatau volcano.

Shaw noted that staying in an airport hotel represents a minor, short‑term inconvenience expected to resolve within days, though she stressed greater concern for ground crews working to protect rhinos under harsh environmental conditions.

A newlywed Malaysian couple returning from a week in Bali received word that their next flight to Kuala Lumpur would not depart until 11 September.

\”What are we doing here for another five days? We only saved money for our honeymoon and were supposed to head home yesterday,\” Amir Hamzah, 29, told Malaysia’s national news outlet Bernama.

He confessed that they had hoped to catch a brief stopover at the airport before embarking on a Monday morning flight, yet now find themselves confined to the terminal for several days.

Monday brought warnings from Indonesia’s Geology Agency that the likelihood of further eruptions persisting in the upcoming weeks remains high.

According to the meteorological service BMKG, volcanic ash reached heights of 6 kilometers above the Java flank, 15 kilometers above the Sumatra side and in certain areas of the westernmost province of Banten.

Anak Krakatau lies on the Sunda Strait, roughly halfway between the islands of Java and Sumatra.

The most recent eruption occurred at 20:23 on Sunday, as recorded by the agency.

“We cannot tell when this will conclude because ash emission is fluid and subject to rapid change,” said Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi regarding the temporary shutdowns of affected airports.

On Sunday, authorities explained that aviation agencies conduct hourly analyses to decide whether the ash plume is spreading or dissipating.

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