Colonial era Halim Perdanakusuma Airport is the first airfield in the city of
Jakarta, which was formerly known as
Batavia. It was built around 1924 and was originally named
Tjililitan Airfield (), after its borough. On November 1, 1928, Tjililitan airfield began operations under a Dutch airline in the
Dutch East Indies, the
Koninklijke Nederlandsch-Indische Luchtvaart Maatschappij (KNILM), which served routes from Batavia to
Bandung, as well as from Batavia to
Semarang and
Surabaya. A year later, the name Tjililitan Air Base gained international recognition after the Dutch airline
KLM set a record for intercontinental flight using a
Fokker F.VII aircraft. The flight covered a distance of 14,500 km from the
Netherlands to Batavia in 10 days, carrying only four passengers. When the
Pacific Theater of
World War II broke out in 1941, the airfield became home to Air Group III (vliegtuiggroep), which consisted of three divisions (afdelingen). On the ground, the airfield was protected by units of the
British Army and the
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL). Despite initially fierce resistance, the airfield was soon overrun by Japanese forces. During the
Japanese occupation (1942–1945), the airfield was seized by the
Imperial Japanese Army Air Service and repurposed as a military base. Numerous Japanese aircraft, particularly
Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters, operated from Tjililitan in support of Pacific War operations against
Allied forces. The airfield then reverted to its original function as a base for the ML-KNIL throughout the
Indonesian National Revolution. During this period, it served as a staging area for Dutch military operations against Indonesian forces, including
Operation Kraai. Between 1946 and 1948, the airfield has been associated in some historical accounts with incidents of extrajudicial violence, in which elements of indigenous KNIL units were reportedly involved in the killing of civilians in the surrounding area, allegedly under orders from their Dutch superiors. It hosted several squadrons, including the 2nd Squadron, which at the time operated
C-47 Dakota aircraft and participated in
Operation Trikora, Indonesia’s joint military campaign in the early 1960s aimed at integrating Dutch-controlled
Western New Guinea into the Republic of Indonesia. The bodies of seven
Indonesian Army officers were discarded by the plotters in
Lubang Buaya, situated just south of the airbase. After the failed coup attempt, President
Sukarno sought refuge at Halim Air Base before fleeing to
Bogor for safety. In the early hours of 2 October 1965, Indonesian Army forces, including units from
Kostrad and
RPKAD, launched an assault on the airbase. After a brief skirmish with rebel troops, the Army successfully secured the airbase. Subsequently, the Army blockaded the runway, preventing Indonesian Air Force aircraft from landing. As a result, many of these aircraft were diverted to
Atang Senjaya Air Base in Bogor.
Contemporary history In addition to serving as a military airbase, the airport began handling international flights in 1974, easing the burden on the busy
Kemayoran Airport. At that time, all international flights were relocated to Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport, while Kemayoran continued to serve only domestic flights. Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport remained a vital gateway for international travel to Jakarta until the opening of
Soekarno–Hatta International Airport in
Tangerang in 1985. Following the closure of Kemayoran in 1985, Halim Perdanakusuma became Jakarta's secondary airport, primarily accommodating charter flights, general aviation, and serving as a base for flying schools for the next 29 years. In the 1990s, the
Directorate General of Civil Aviation designated Halim as a hub for non-scheduled flights and scheduled services using aircraft with a capacity of fewer than 100 passengers. In 2013, to ease congestion at Soekarno–Hatta Airport, the Halim airport authority announced that it would give 60 flight slots per hour for scheduled flights and, for the first time, the 2013 Haj pilgrims used this airport. Batik Air initially was the largest user, taking 32 slots from 74 slots available for all airlines a day. Since 2014, the airport has served domestic scheduled flights with a capacity up to 2.2 million passengers per year from about 200,000 passengers in 2013. In early November 2021, Indonesia's
Ministry of Transportation announced they would close the airport temporarily for public use for the next nine months for renovation. Domestic flights would be moved to
Soekarno–Hatta International Airport or
Pondok Cabe Airport. This decision was made based on the evaluation of Halim's aging infrastructure, like the runways and terminals, and the impact to the airport's quality of services. The airport was closed from March to September 2022 to allow for renovation works. == Facilities and development ==