Inp.polri.go.id - Cilegon. Minister of Transportation Dudy Purwagandhi has clarified that Indonesia’s international flight routes remain open, dismissing circulating rumors that global connectivity would be severed due to the escalating Middle East conflict. 

Speaking from the Merak-Ciwandan port area, the Minister addressed misinformation suggesting a government-mandated shutdown of international aviation, confirming that the reports were baseless and had since been retracted by the relevant media outlets.

"I can state that those reports are untrue. The media outlet in question has also provided a clarification and retracted the news. We remain committed to ensuring passenger mobility and global connectivity stay smooth," he said, as cited by antaranews.com on Wednesday (18/3/2026).

The government said that while regional tensions have caused some operational friction, the situation is being managed through contingency planning rather than closures. 

Director General of Civil Aviation Lukman F. Laisa noted that while some aircraft were briefly stranded at Soekarno-Hatta and I Gusti Ngurah Rai airports earlier this week, airlines like Emirates and Etihad have already resumed limited operations. 

Although a fuel farm disruption in Dubai on Monday caused secondary delays, the Ministry is working closely with carriers to handle rescheduling and refunds, ensuring that even affected Umrah pilgrims have been successfully rerouted or repatriated.

(mg/inp/pr/rs