Domine Eduard Osok Airport

"Sorong Airport" redirects here. For the old airport, see Jefman Airport.

Domine Eduard Osok Airport (IATA: SOQ, ICAO: WASS) is a domestic airport serving Sorong, the capital and largest city of the province of Southwest Papua in Western New Guinea, Indonesia. The airport is located approximately 8 km (5.0 miles) from Sorong's city center. It is the largest and busiest airport on the Bird’s Head Peninsula and serves as the main gateway to Sorong and nearby regions, including the Raja Ampat Islands. The airport replaced the smaller Jefman Airport, a former World War II airfield located on Jefman Island.The airport is named after Domine Eduard Osok, a pastor from Sorong who was known for his missionary work and for spreading Christianity in Sorong and surrounding areas.^[1] Domine Eduard Osok Airport is connected to major Indonesian cities such as Jakarta, Denpasar, Makassar, and Manado, as well as key cities in Western New Guinea including Jayapura, Timika, and Manokwari. It also serves rural flights to remote interior regions of the island, which are generally accessible only by air.

Susi Air aircraft at Domine Eduard Osok Airport

Domine Eduard Osok Airport Bandar Udara Domine Eduard Osok
IATA: SOQ ICAO: WASS WMO: 97502
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Government of Indonesia
Operator	Directorate General of Civil Aviation
Serves	Sorong
Location	Sorong, Southwest Papua, Indonesia
Opened	20 March 2004; 21 years ago (2004-03-20)
Time zone	WIT (UTC+09:00)
Elevation AMSL	10 ft / 3 m
Coordinates	00°53′39″S 131°17′20″E
Map
SOQ/WASS Location in Southwest Papua Show map of Southwest Papua SOQ/WASS Location in Western New Guinea Show map of Western New Guinea SOQ/WASS Location in Indonesia Show map of Indonesia
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 09/27 2,500 8,202 Asphalt
Statistics (2017)
Passenger ≈750,000
Sources: DAFIF, List of the busiest airports in Indonesia

History

Before the current airport opened, Jefman Airport served as the main airport of Sorong. However, that airport was suffering from overcapacity and could not be expanded due to lack of land. Moreover, due to only having a single 1,650 m runway, the airport could only accommodate small aircraft such as the Fokker 28. Furthermore, to go to Sorong, passengers still needed to travel by boat from the very time-consuming airport. To solve this issue, the government decided to build a new airport to replace the obsolete Jefman Airport. Construction was finished in 2004 and Jefman Airport is now closed.

In August 2019, the airport was damaged by violent protesters following large-scale protests in Papua.^[2]

As an airport feeder, Domine Eduard Osok Airport serves domestic scheduled services operated by several airlines including Garuda Indonesia, Sriwijaya Air, and Xpress Air. In addition, the airport also serves pioneer destinations which are operated by Susi Air to some surrounding areas such as Ayawasi, Inawatan, Teminabuan, and Waisai. With a length of 2,500 meters and 45 meters wide, this airport runway can be landed by jet aircraft like the Boeing 737 series and the Airbus A320.^[3]

Facilities and development

In 2013, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation allocated IDR 50 billion ($5.1 million) for runway width expansion to 45 meters from 0 meters.^[4] Due to overcapacity, the government has lengthened the runway to 2,500 m from 1,950 m so that the airport can accommodate Boeing 737 and Airbus A320.^[5] Expansion of the airport commenced in 2011 and finished in 2016. The expansion included the construction of a passenger terminal building into 2 floors, the installation of two new jet bridges and a fixed bridge, baggage handling system, terminal lift, luggage x-ray, multi-view cabin, walk-through metal detector, and addition of other facilities such as concession area and interior terminal design update.^[6] In that period, the total APBN budget used was about 236 billion rupiah. With the airport built more modern and magnificent, it is expected that air transportation services in the city of Sorong and surrounding areas will be increasing. That way, Domine Eduard Osok Airport as the gateway of Sorong City can become a booster for Eastern Indonesia to continue growing. The new terminal was inaugurated by President Joko Widodo and Transportation Minister Ignatius Jonan,^[7]

On the other side, the navigation facility will be improved in the future. AirNav Sorong also seeks to optimize the instrument landing system (ILS) to assist the landing. This would allow aircraft to land at the airport with ease and also allow the airport to serve night flights. AirNav Sorong is also currently installing a billing data system (BDS) and a billing cash system (BCS). The renovation of the air traffic control tower that was damaged due to an earthquake will also be part of the improvement of the airport's navigation system.^[8]

Facility

The exterior of the passenger terminal displays a unique form of ornamentation resembling betel nuts. The architecture design of Domine Eduard Osok Airport is designed to reflect the local culture. In addition, the interior has also been enhanced and equipped with facilities that add passenger comfort. With a passenger terminal building expanded to 13,700 m2, the airport can accommodate 782 passengers daily.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Airlines	Destinations
Batik Air	Jakarta–Soekarno-Hatta, Manokwari, Timika[9]
Garuda Indonesia	Denpasar,[10] Jakarta–Soekarno-Hatta
Lion Air	Ambon,[11] Manado, Surabaya[a]
Sriwijaya Air	Makassar[12]
Super Air Jet	Jakarta–Soekarno-Hatta,[13][14] Jayapura,[b][15] Makassar,[16] Manokwari[17]
Susi Air	Ayawasi, Bintuni, Gebe, Inanwatan, Kabare,[citation needed] Teminabuan, Waisai
TransNusa	Manado
Wings Air	Fakfak,[18] Kaimana

Notes:

1. Surabaya is continuation of Ambon flight as the same flight number
2. Jayapura is continuation of Manokwari flight as the same flight number