More news on this day
A major eruption of Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau volcano over the weekend has forced the temporary closure of eight airports, disrupted international routes and left more than 170,000 passengers stranded after over 1,500 flights were grounded across western parts of the country.
Get the latest news straight to your inbox!
Eight Airports Closed as Ash Clouds Spread
Publicly available information shows that volcanic ash from Anak Krakatau began drifting toward densely populated parts of western Indonesia on Sunday, September 6, prompting airspace restrictions and airport shutdowns. The disruption centered on the capital region, but extended across Sumatra and Java as ash clouds spread along prevailing winds.
Reports indicate that flight operations were suspended at eight airports, including Jakarta’s Soekarno Hatta International Airport, the country’s main gateway, and Halim Perdanakusuma, which serves both commercial and government traffic. Other affected facilities included Husein Sastranegara in Bandung, Radin Inten II in Lampung and several regional airports that support domestic and limited international services.
Data compiled by regional and international news outlets indicates that more than 1,500 flights were canceled or diverted across these eight airports in less than 24 hours, as aviation authorities and airport operators sought to keep aircraft away from high altitude ash. Volcanic ash can severely damage jet engines and cockpit sensors, leading to stringent precautionary rules whenever plumes intersect with busy flight corridors.
Satellite imagery and ground observations published by monitoring agencies suggest that the ash plume from Anak Krakatau rose several kilometers into the atmosphere, high enough to intersect key routes linking Jakarta with Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Australia.
International and Domestic Routes Disrupted
The closures quickly rippled through international networks, with long haul and regional services to Jakarta among the worst affected. Coverage from aviation and regional media shows that flights from hubs such as Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Doha were canceled or forced to hold while operators assessed ash forecasts and runway conditions.
Public schedules and airline notices cited in multiple reports suggest that Soekarno Hatta alone accounted for around 960 to 970 of the affected flights, including a large share of international departures and arrivals. Carriers rerouted some services to alternative airports on Java and Sumatra where conditions remained within safety thresholds, but many flights were removed from schedules entirely while airspace advisories remained in force.
Domestic connectivity also suffered, with links between Jakarta and major Indonesian destinations such as Surabaya, Medan and Denpasar facing widespread cancellations. Although Bali’s main airport remained open according to local travel advisories, travelers connecting via Jakarta experienced missed onward flights and extended layovers, illustrating how a single congested hub can create cascading disruption across a wider network.
Aviation analysts quoted in public reports noted that even after runways reopen, schedule recovery can take days as aircraft and crew are out of position, terminal capacity becomes strained and airlines work through large backlogs of rebooked passengers.
More Than 170,000 Passengers Stranded
According to figures shared in official statements and summarized by several news outlets, about 170,000 passengers were directly affected by the shutdown across the eight airports, including those whose flights were canceled, heavily delayed or diverted. At Jakarta’s main airport, images and eyewitness accounts published on social media and in local press showed long queues at airline counters as travelers sought refunds, rebooking or overnight accommodation.
Some passengers were reported to have been stuck in terminals for many hours while airlines waited for updated ash dispersion forecasts and revised airspace guidance. Others opted to reroute via unaffected cities in Southeast Asia, turning relatively short regional trips into multi stop journeys lasting much of the day or longer.
Travel forums and passenger reports described a mix of experiences, with some carriers arranging hotel stays or meal vouchers and others directing travelers to customer service channels for later resolution. The combination of weekend peak traffic and sudden airspace restrictions led to crowded departure halls, tight seating, and limited availability on the first flights to resume once conditions began to improve.
Tourism watchers noted that the timing near the end of the northern summer holiday season meant that both international tourists and Indonesian domestic travelers were heavily represented among those stranded, adding pressure on hotels and ground transport in gateway cities.
Operational Recovery and Ongoing Caution
By Monday, September 7, publicly available information indicated that some airports had begun a phased reopening, with Atung Bungsu Airport in South Sumatra among the first to resume more regular operations. However, reports also pointed out that several larger airports, including Soekarno Hatta, were due to maintain restrictions through at least part of the day while further ash assessments were carried out.
Air navigation bulletins and airport updates compiled by regional media emphasized that operators were using conservative criteria for reopening airspace, reflecting international practice developed after past volcanic events that significantly disrupted global aviation. Even once runways reopened, many airlines continued to monitor ash forecasts closely and adjust routes or cruising altitudes to avoid residual contamination.
Industry observers noted that the immediate priority for airports and airlines would be clearing the backlog of grounded passengers while coordinating with meteorological and volcanology agencies on any renewed activity from Anak Krakatau. The eruption follows a history of intermittent unrest at the volcano, which emerged in the early 20th century from the caldera left by the catastrophic 1883 Krakatau event.
Travel advisories reviewed on Monday generally encouraged passengers with upcoming flights to or through Jakarta and western Indonesia to check directly with their airlines and avoid heading to the airport without confirmed new itineraries. Online booking data suggested that some travelers shifted plans to later in the week in anticipation of possible further ash emissions and schedule changes.
Comparisons With Past Volcanic Air Disruptions
The Anak Krakatau disruption is smaller in scale than some of the most far reaching volcanic events in recent aviation history, but early data highlight its significant regional impact. For comparison, published analyses of the 2010 Eyjafjallajokull eruption in Iceland show that more than 100,000 flights were eventually canceled worldwide during that episode, stranding around 5 million passengers across Europe and beyond.
More recent regional events, such as the 2020 eruption of Taal volcano in the Philippines, led to the temporary closure of Manila’s main airport and affected tens of thousands of travelers, reinforcing how quickly volcanic ash can challenge air operations in densely populated corridors. The Anak Krakatau event fits into a broader pattern in which aviation systems have become more resilient, yet still highly sensitive to volcanic hazards that can shift rapidly with wind and atmospheric conditions.
Aviation specialists commenting through open sources noted that improved satellite monitoring, ash modeling and international coordination since 2010 have helped reduce uncertainty around when to suspend or resume flights. At the same time, the weekend’s events in Indonesia underscore that even with better tools, large hubs located near active volcanoes will continue to face episodic, high impact disruptions.
Looking ahead, airlines and airports in the region are expected to review their contingency plans, including passenger communication strategies, crew and aircraft positioning, and coordination with tourism stakeholders, as they work through the aftermath of more than 1,500 grounded flights and assess the potential for further activity at Anak Krakatau.
Gulf News coverage of Anak Krakatau flight disruptions
Channel News Asia report on Jakarta airport suspensions