Colonial era of the
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL) at Tuban Airfield, 1946 at Tuban Airfield, 1949 In the early 1930s, the
Dutch colonial government constructed an airfield at Tuban, situated at the narrowest point along Bali’s southern coast. Initially known as Tuban Airfield, it consisted of a simple 700-metre grass strip built by the Dutch East Indies’
Voor Verkeer en Waterstaat (Department of Transport, Public Works and Water Management). At the time, the facility was rudimentary, with only a few huts and a short runway. The airline intended to use this airstrip as an overnight stop before continuing to
Makassar. At the time, its aircraft routinely landed and stayed overnight at Rambang in
Lombok before proceeding to Makassar the following day. Imperial Airways requested that the airstrip be repaired, reinforced, and, if possible, equipped with communication facilities linked to
Surabaya. In January 1938, the airfield was finally rebuilt and upgraded to accommodate larger American aircraft such as the
Douglas DC-3; previously, it had been limited to handling aircraft no larger than the
Fokker F.VII. At the time, the facility had been abandoned, with no aircraft of the
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (ML-KNIL) present. In its aftermath, the poorly motivated garrison of around 600 Dutch-led Balinese militia quickly deserted as Japanese troops advanced on the island, while their Dutch officers fled to Java. During the
Japanese occupation from 1942 to 1945, the airport’s runway was improved and repaired, including the use of pierced steel plates to restore damaged sections. Between 1942 and 1947, the runway was extended from 700 to 1,200 meters, The airfield was used by the Imperial Japanese Naval Air Service throughout the war and served as a base for the
Tainan Air Group during the
campaign in Java; however, no significant Japanese fighter squadron was stationed in Denpasar thereafter. Nevertheless, the capture of Tuban Airfield and the island of Bali deprived the
Allied forces of a key fighter staging point along the route from Australia to Java. Throughout the war, Allied forces repeatedly targeted the airfield with air raids in an effort to render it inoperable. After the
Japanese surrender in 1945, the airfield briefly came under the control of local Indonesian militias before being handed over to the
Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (NICA) in 1946. In 1949, a terminal building and other basic aviation facilities were constructed, along with a simple wooden air traffic control tower. Air-to-ground communications at the time were conducted using
Morse code transceivers.
Post-independence era McDonnell Douglas DC-9 at Ngurah Rai International Airport, 1980 Following the
Dutch recognition of Indonesian sovereignty, control of the airfield was transferred to Indonesian authorities in 1950. President
Soekarno was recorded landing at Tuban Airfield in 1955 aboard a Douglas DC-3. From 1959, the airfield began receiving international flights, including services operated by
Scandinavian Airlines System and
Qantas, and was already capable of accommodating
Convair 240 aircraft. To accommodate the steadily increasing number of passengers, the terminal buildings were expanded, with construction of an international terminal undertaken between 1965 and 1969. This development added international facilities to the existing domestic passenger terminal. The upgraded airport was inaugurated on 1 August 1968 by then-President
Soeharto alongside the renaming of the airfield to its current name. The name honors
I Gusti Ngurah Rai, a prominent Indonesian nationalist leader during the country’s struggle for independence. The earlier runway extension had also disrupted natural sand movement along the coastline. By 1975, projected passenger growth had already exceeded the capacity of the existing facilities, prompting the construction of a new international passenger terminal, which was completed in 1978. The former international terminal was subsequently converted into the domestic terminal, while the old domestic terminal was repurposed for cargo and catering operations. In the 1990s, further development of Ngurah Rai International Airport was carried out under the Airport Facilities and Aviation Safety Development (FBUKP) programs. Phase I of the project (1990–1992) included the expansion of the terminal building with the addition of aviobridges, extension of the runway to 3,000 meters, relocation of taxiways, enlargement of the apron, renovation and expansion of the passenger terminal, expansion of the vehicle parking area, and development of cargo and operations buildings, as well as improvements to air navigation systems and aircraft fuel supply facilities. In 2005, the
Transportation Security Administration of the
United States determined that the airport was not meeting the security standards of the
International Civil Aviation Organization. However, this warning was lifted in 2007. By the end of April 2011, the airport's terminals handled 11.1 million passengers a year, exceeding its capacity of 8 million.
Angkasa Pura I will relocate 35 guest houses to accommodate the expansion, which is expected to occupy up to 265.5 hectares of land for a new access road to the airport and a new airport building, the construction of a new flyover, enlarge airport terminal and improve luggage handling system. Plans to expand the international and domestic terminals at Ngurah Rai International Airport were announced in September 2008, with an estimated cost of up to Rp 1 trillion (US$110.10 million) and an initial targeted completion date in 2011. The total terminal area was planned to increase from 83,000 square meters to around 200,000 square meters, comprising 130,000 square metros for the international terminal and 70,000 square meters for the domestic terminal. In December 2008, Angkasa Pura I confirmed that expansion works in Ngurah Rai International Airport would commence in early 2009. The Airport Facilities Development and Flight Safety (FBUKP) Phase III programs for Ngurah Rai International Airport included the development of terminal buildings, a multi-storey car park, and apron facilities. The plan involved constructing a new 120,000-square-metre international terminal on the site of the existing domestic terminal, while the existing international terminal would be converted into the new domestic terminal. Upon completion of these developments, Ngurah Rai International Airport was projected to accommodate up to 25 million passengers per year. The planned airport buildings were described as a blend contemporary and
Balinese traditional architectural elements. The international terminal was opened in September 2013, followed by the domestic terminal in September 2014. In 2016,
Airports Council International awarded Ngurah Rai International Airport as the world's third best airport with 15-25 million passengers annually. ==Facilities and development==