Normal services have been resumed at Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport after the airport’s only runway was closed for two hours on Sunday, March 9th, 2025.
The runway closure caused travel chaos at Bali Airport after 31 flights were delayed due to the major incident.
The major incident was caused by an Airfast aircraft with registration number DH PK OAM 6 that was traveling from Benete, in West Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) to Denpasar.
The aircraft experienced technical problems when landing, though all seven passengers on the small aircraft, as well as all crew were safely evacuated without injury.
@faizalmaulana_22 Salah satu tempat terindah saat landing 😍🛬 #Bali ♬ Landing di Bali – Faizal Maulana
The situation saw the airport’s only runway closed for two hours on Sunday, between 10.15 am and 12.15 pm, when the aircraft was safely cleared from the runaway and normal order could resume.
Though, 31 flights were impacted by the closure, comprising five domestic and five international departing flights, and nine domestic and twelve international arriving flights. A further three flights were ordered to double back to their original designations of Lombok, Jakarta, and Singapore.
The General Manager of I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport Ahmad Syaugi Shahab, spoke to reporters once the runway had opened up again.
He explained, “This [temporary closure] was done to evacuate passengers and the aircraft to the apron, as well as to check and ensure that no foreign objects were left on the runway due to this incident, which could potentially endanger flight safety.”
Bali Airport is one of the busiest airports in all of Indonesia, second only to Jakarta’s Soekarno–Hatta International Airport.
Shahab confirmed that I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport coordinated with all affected airlines and passengers so that the rescheduling process and solutions for operational disruptions could be delivered smoothly. All impacted flights were back on schedule within 2-3.5 hours.
Sundays’s incident shows just how little margin for error there is at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport. This is one of many reasons why tourist and travellers must take out fully comprehensive travel insurance before they book Bali travel. In the event of major delays, flight changes or disruptions travel insurance can step in and provide assistance.
2025 is set to the the busiest year on record for both Bali as a travel destination and I Gusti Ngurah Rai as an airport. More flights services are being added to the schedule every month, for both domestic and international flights.
Leaders are on a mission to make Bali a travel transit hub, like Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, or Singapore, that provides travelers with no only access to the Island of the Gods, but also destinations around Indonesia, Asia, and the Pacific.
Major news coming from Bali Airport last week confirmed that Indonesia’s TransNusa Airline will become the first Indonesian carrier to launch a Bali – Guangzhou flight route.
The China-Indonesia route will also seamlessly connect travelers to the TransNusa Airline service from Denpasar to Perth, meaning travelers can now travel Perth – Bali – Guangzhou, opening up a whole new world of business and leisure travel opportunities.
The TransNusa Group Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Bernard Francis explained “With the launch of our new Bali-Guangzhou route, our passengers can now enjoy one of the fastest scheduled connecting flights to either Guangzhou or Perth via Bali, with a transit duration of either 1 hour and 30 minutes or 2 hours and 35 minutes, depending on the day and time of the scheduled flights.”
In 2025 so far Bali Airport has already served well over 2.5 million passengers and as the Nypei and Eid al-Fitr holidays approach leaders are bracing for a huge influx of travellers as millions of Indonesian people travel across the country to celebrate Lebaran with their families.
Tourists in Bali should be prepared for extra passenger traffic, and vehicle traffic congestion throughout the province from 17th March through to 6th April 2025.
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