In anticipation of the huge increase in the number of flight passengers, extra security measures inside and outside the airport are considered paramount by the authorities.
It was reported that 300 police officers have been dispatched to guard Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Jakarta, in anticipation of the homecoming (mudik) movement as the Hari Raya week approaches closer.
AKBP Ronald Fredy Christian Sipayung, on behalf of the airport’s police precinct, told the press that the number of dispatched police officers may increase in the coming days and weeks, with different officers from different departments serving as additional aid to the precinct.
“With regards to the homecoming [mudik] and reverse flow [arus balik] movements during Hari Raya Eid Al-Fitr 1445 Hijriah, Polresta Bandara Soetta [the airport’s police precinct] will dispatch approximately 300 officers out of the total number of 541 personnel,” Sipayung told the press on Tuesday, the 26th of March. “We have also established coordination with related parties such as the army, the immigration office, and Angkasa Pura II [the airport management company] to thicken up the security.”
To anticipate a huge increase in the number of arriving and departing flight passengers, Sipayung explained that some of the plans the precinct is ready to implement are establishing service posts and an integrated post that can monitor the movements of all the passengers within the premises of the airport. The security measures are also strengthened by having bomb defusers and bloodhounds ready on-site.
“This special unit [bomb defusers and bloodhounds] is part of what we anticipate in accordance with what we might need on the field — in case certain detection’s are needed on this site that is also a vital, national object,” Sipayung added.
Sipayung also noted that extra security measures would also be added to areas outside the airport.
“The security measures do not simply stop at the airport terminal areas; we also cover risky spots such as the entrance and exit junctions, the north perimeter, the south perimeter, and other areas that commonly facilitate public activities,” Sipayung elaborated.
Meanwhile, Angkasa Pura II previously predicted that the airport would reach its peak busy period between the 5th and the 6th of April. The airport management company also predicted that, during the peak busy period, at least two million people would fly to and from Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.