Lombok Int'l Airport to Operate Soon

"The sooner is the better," the vice president said, adding that the Lombok International Airport is important for the NTB’s economic development, especially relating to the provincial wish to prioritize the tourism development.

"I feel since the beginning that this is the key point for NTB’s further development. It’s very strategic, especially when tourism is managed as the provincial focus of attention, so airport is very important," Boediono said.

The Vice President then got around the Lombok International Airport terminal building that is still unfinished yet.

"God willing, on September 30, everything is finished so it can be fully operated on October 1," Haryoso said, explaining that the airport simulations will be conducted on September 5-8, 2011.

Actually the Lombok International Airport was initially expected to be operational in July 2011, but it was postponed due to the expansion of the airport terminal area from 14,000 square meters to 21,000 square meters. Thus, the BIL project work was increased.

NTB has a number of tourist resorts, among others the Senggigi beach, Cakranegara, Gili Air, Gili Meno, Gili Trawangan, Gili Bidara, Gili Lawang, Narmada park and Mayura park. Apart from that, Mount Rinjani, Kuta Beach Lombok, the water falls of Sendang Gile, Tiu Kelep, Benang Stokel, Benang Kelambu.

The Lombok Island topography is dominated by the Mount Rinjani (3,726 meters above sea level) which is the third highest in Indonesia. Aside from that Lombok also offered its culinary including "Ayam Taliwang" or a kind of fried chicken and "Plecing Kankung", vegetable like sauteed kale which can lure more tourists to come.

In many ways, Lombok is similar to Bali, and foreign tourists began recognizing Lombok in the decade of the 1990s. About 80 percent of the Island population is the Sasak tribe, a tribe that is still close to the Balinese ethnic, but mostly converted to Islam.

The remaining population is Balinese, Javanese, Chinese and Arabic. With lots of tourism potentials, the NTB province has a dire need to have an international airport because the aviation transport limitations has so far become one of obstacles to develop tourism sector in this province towards the Lombok-Sumbawa 2012 Visit. The Lombok-Sumbawa 2012 Visit has targeted as many as one million tourist arrivals in this province.