AirAsia cancels Bali flights as Mount Agung erupts

A local guide and foreign tourists take pictures of Mount Agung volcano erupting from Amed, Karangasem Regency in Bali, Indonesia on June 29, 2018. REUTERS

KUALA LUMPUR: Flights to and from Bali, Indonesia have been cancelled for the second day on Friday following the disruptions caused by the Mount Agung eruptions.

Low-cost carrier AirAsia said that as at 8.30am, the I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport (DPS) was temporarily closed on Friday from 3am to 7pm local time.

“Most of AirAsia flights from and to Denpasar, Bali have been cancelled today. Several flights remain as scheduled until further notice,” it said. Six of its flights to and from Bali were cancelled on Friday.

AirAsia said it would notify guests of their flight status via email and SMS. 

“AirAsia strongly encourages all guests to update their contact details at airasia.com to ensure that they are notified of any updates to their flights,” it said.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg reported domestic airports at Banyuwangi and Jember in East Java were also closed, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency said on Twitter. 

The shutdown of Bali airport will lead to cancellation of 446 flights, including 207 international flights, affecting an estimated 74,928 passengers, he said.

Mount Agung volcano continued to belch ash and smoke after ash clouds rose as high as 16,454 feet (5,142m) above sea level, according to the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry. The airport at Bali, the biggest tourist destination in Indonesia, was shut down for more than a day in November, leading to losses of about $1 billion for the tourism industry.

The Bali airport was shut from 3 a.m. local time, PT Angkasa Pura I, the state-run airport operator said in a statement. 

Authorities will review the closing at 12 noon after taking into account the latest volcanic ash distribution data, state air-navigation operator AirNav said in a statement.

Qantas Airways Ltd., Singapore Airlines Ltd., AirAsia Bhd. and PT Garuda Indonesia are among the airlines operating flights to Bali, which draws an estimated 5 million tourists annually. 

Garuda and its unit PT Citilink Indonesia canceled all flights to and from Bali, the companies said in separate statements. AirAsia Indonesia canceled at least 50 flights to and from Bali, the airline said in statement.