2004: The Launch of an Indonesian Airport on the Bird’s Head Peninsula

March 20, 2004

In Indonesia, an airport in the city of Sorong in the province of West Papua was officially opened. This city was part of the region split off from West Papua in 2022 to form the province of Southwest Papua. Both of these provinces are located on the Bird’s Head Peninsula, which makes up the northwestern part of the island of New Guinea. This peninsula was given such a unique name because it is shaped like the head of a bird. (Indonesia has a total of six provinces on the western half of New Guinea; that portion of the island is widely known as Western New Guinea)

The airport was named after Domine Eduard Osok (1920-1988), a Christian pastor who achieved renown for his missionary efforts and other contributions throughout Sorong and the surrounding area. This airport replaced Jefman Airport, which had been in service in what is now Southwest Papua since 1947.

Hendra Gunawan, reporting for the Indonesian news portal Tribunnews.com, described Domine Eduard Osok Airport on the day of its inauguration. “Not only is its appearance polished, various sophisticated airport facilities have also been added,” he noted. “As a result, Domine Eduard Osok Airport looks magnificent and modern, no less than other airports in big cities in Indonesia.”

Gunawan also stated, “On the exterior of the passenger terminal, a unique ornamental shape resembling a betel nut [the fruit of one of the plants native to Southeast Asia] is visible. The architectural design of Domine Eduard Osok Airport (DEO) is indeed designed to reflect the local culture. In addition, the interior has also been beautified and equipped with facilities to increase passenger comfort.”

The airlines serving Domine Eduard Osok Airport include Garuda Indonesia Airways, Sriwijaya Air, and Xpress Air. This airport is one of the busiest in all of Indonesia. Moreover, it is second only to Sentani International Airport in the province of Papua as the largest of the airports located in Western New Guinea.

Photo Credit: Davidelit (licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)

For more information on airports in Indonesia, please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_airports_in_Indonesia