SINGAPORE – Air travel between Singapore and Indonesia descended into confusion after Mount Anak Krakatau erupted, sending volcanic ash across western Indonesia and disrupting flights at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. According to Channel NewsAsia (CNA), conflicting airline updates left some passengers arriving at Changi Airport only to discover that their flights had been cancelled, while others in Jakarta were turned away even after clearing immigration.
At Changi, at least 19 Singapore Airlines services were cancelled on Sunday, September 6, as the eruption affected the airspace around Jakarta. Changi Airport reported 301 affected flights between 1.30am and 1.30pm, including 233 domestic services, 58 international flights and 10 cargo operations. The suspension at Soekarno-Hatta was repeatedly extended as authorities monitored the movement of the ash cloud.
For passengers, the uncertainty became almost as frustrating as the cancellations themselves. Seven-month-pregnant traveller Catrine Carina told CNA she and her husband had checked their flight information before leaving for the airport but only discovered the disruption after arriving. “We were still thinking, a two-hour flight should be fine for me, suddenly this thing happened,” she said. Her travel plans were complicated further because pregnant passengers may require a new fit-to-fly medical certificate if their departure is delayed too long.
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Another traveller, Tina Seng, said a Scoot cancellation message conflicted with the Singapore Airlines app, which still displayed her flight as “confirmed.” She and her family therefore went to Changi expecting to travel to Jakarta for the September holidays. “We’re still thinking whether to continue, because we cannot predict what’s going to happen,” she told CNA.
The confusion was also evident in Jakarta. Tanzanian businessman Muhammad Akbar said he had already received his boarding pass, passed immigration and reached his gate before being told his Bangkok flight had been cancelled. “I understand there is a volcanic eruption but we need solutions,” he said, explaining that hotel, transport and other arrangements would have to be changed.
The disruption extended beyond individual flights. Reuters reported that volcanic ash affected multiple Indonesian airports, with hundreds of thousands of travellers facing cancellations and delays as authorities kept monitoring conditions.
For passengers caught between changing notices and uncertain departure times, the airport became less a gateway to their destination than a waiting room with no clear timetable.
