Kualanamu International Airport

The name of the airport was reported to be a suggestion from the people of Karo to the government and later granted by the Ministry of Transportation. The name consists of two words: 'Kuala,' a Malay and Indonesian word for 'river mouth;' and 'Namu' or 'Namo,' the Karonese for 'deep sea.' Thus, 'Kualanamu' means 'meeting point.' It could have also been inspired by Kuala Lumpur International Airport. ==History==

Polonia Airport was the site of several accidents. It is located in the centre of the city, giving a challenging takeoff path and a relatively short runway. The development of Kualanamu Airport initiated in 1991. In a visit to Medan, Azwar Anas, Minister of Transport at the time, stated that for the sake of aviation safety, a new airport would be developed outside of the city of Medan. This accident killed the incumbent North Sumatran governor at that time Tengku Rizal Nurdin and his predecessor Raja Inal Siregar, who died a day later. This accident also involved ground casualties with at least 50 casualties, as the airport is very close to overcrowded residential areas and the runway was only , which although considered long for European standards, is short for Indonesian standards due to it being at a lower latitude from the equator, meaning it is warmer and as a result the air is thinner, which ultimately means that longer runway distances are needed. All of land was acquired between 1995 and 1997 and with the certificate Exploitation Rights (Hak Pengelolaaan) No. 1 on 29 November 1999 and 100% of the land belonged to PT Angkasa Pura II. Between 1999 and 2006, some people used parts of the land illegally as agricultural land and PT Angkasa Pura II (AP II) offered them monetary compensation to move elsewhere. Construction resumed on 29 June 2006, shortly before the first anniversary of the crash of Mandala Airlines Flight 091. Jusuf Kalla, vice President of Indonesia at the time, laid the first cornerstone. This marked the construction of Kualanamu after several years with no progress. Computer renderings showing a T-shape design were posted on the company's website. With land acquisition as the biggest hurdle for this project, the airport's opening was delayed until 2013 due to lack of local government awareness. On 22 July, a trailer for the airport was released. Soft opening A soft opening to the public was done on 25 July 2013. The airport's first commercial departure was a domestic Garuda Indonesia GA181 ferry flight from Soekarno–Hatta International Airport Terminal 3 touching down at approximately 05:00 WIB. Grand opening The airport was officially opened by President of the Republic of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, which was marked by the signing of the stone inscription plaque on 27 March 2014. ==Facilities and infrastructure==

The airport is Indonesia's third largest, after Soekarno–Hatta International Airport and the new Kertajati International Airport, with a passenger terminal and will eventually have a capacity of 22 million passengers (2030). Kualanamu Airport has an automatic baggage handling system, thus becoming the first airport in Indonesia which does not need baggage porters. The airport is equipped with a single runway, and a parallel taxiway capable of accommodating wide-body aircraft, including category – F jets such as the Airbus A380, Boeing 747-8, and Antonov 225. It also includes an apron area measuring capable of handling 33 aircraft. It also has a cargo area that can handle 3 carriers with 65,000 tonnes/annum and parking capacity with 405 taxis, 55 busses, and 908 cars. Phase 1 of the new airport has a capacity to serve 8 million passengers annually, but at early 2014 has served 8.3 million passengers annualized. Phase 2 starts construction in mid-2015 to serve 25 million passengers. Phase III expansion of the airport includes expansion of the runway to allow the airport to accommodate the Airbus A380, and expansion of cargo area to from at present, and expansion of passenger terminal to to increase the capacity from 9 million passengers to 17 million passengers annually, which starts in 2018. AP II also plans to develop a plot of land for commercial area outside the passenger terminal. The commercial area is built with an "airport city" concept with 3, 4 and 5 star hotels, a hypermarket, office building, hospital and movie theater. , the ILS system in used is ILS CAT I for both Runway 05 and 23. Arrivals and departures are usually directed to Runway 23 while Runway 05 will be used depending on wind direction. Airport hotel The airport has three hotels: Horison Sky (rebranded as Anara Sky), Wing Hotel and Crew Hotel. ==Operations==

check-in counters at the airport Airside facilities are controlled by the Indonesian government, while landside facilities would be owned by a joint venture with PT Angkasa Pura II, which is expected to provide $350 million as an initial investment in return for a 30-year lease, after which ownership would revert to PT Angkasa Pura II. The airport will be linked to the city of Medan by a $10.7 million railway project. An highway is under construction improving the airport's road connection to the city of Medan. It will cost $1.5 billion and will have four interchanges, four underpasses, seven flyovers, and three toll gates. The airport is the first in Indonesia with a publicly accessible check-in area (other Indonesian airports restrict access to ticket holders with security at the gate), as in a much larger and more spacious check-in area than the existing airport. The airport is designed by Wiratman & Associates, who had also designed several other new airports and office buildings in Indonesia. Computer renderings showing a T-shape design were posted on the company's website. Another rendering and masterplan can be found in Angkasa Pura II website. A visualization of the airport was also released. The Indonesian government hopes that Kualanamu "can compete with Singapore Changi, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, etc.," and make Kualanamu "an international hub." ==Airlines and destinations==

Passenger Notes: == Traffic ==

Rail transport Train services are operated by PT Railink, a joint venture between PT Angkasa Pura II and Indonesian Railway. It is the first integrated airport rail link in Indonesia. The trains were made in South Korea. The route runs from Medan railway station beside the Merdeka Square to Kualanamu International Airport railway station, providing the fastest way to reach the airport, taking 30 minutes, and the return taking 30 to 47 minutes. In May 2014, a double-tracking from Medan to the airport began. This will cut time travel by at least 10 minutes. On 28 September 2022, Railink launched new stop-over at Bandar Khalipah Station in Deli Serdang. Estimated travel time from this station will take 20 minutes to reach the airport. Passengers can also take up journey from Bandar Khalipah Station to Medan railway station with estimated travel time 10 minutes. Online bookings were made available directly from its website. Roads The airport is connected by the Medan–Kualanamu–Tebing Tinggi Toll Road, an expressway specifically made to connect the airport and city Tebing Tinggi and other parts of eastern North Sumatra, which is also part of the Trans-Sumatra Toll Road network. An arterial road connecting the city of Medan and the airport were also built as an alternative. Airport shuttle bus Taxis Taxi costs about twice that of train tickets. Taxi operators that bring passengers to the airport are Blue Bird, KARSA, MATRA, and Nice Trans. Grab and Go-Jek operate inside the airport. ==Accolades==

In June 2015, Kualanamu received a certificate from Skytrax as a "4-Star Airport", the first Indonesian airport to receive such title. On 16 June 2016, the airport won the Diamond Award for the Service Quality Award under the 'International Airports' category by Angkasa Pura II. In August 2019, the custom system of the airport received an accolade from the 2018 Innovation Competition by the Ministry of Finance, given by the Directorate General of Customs and Excise, along with Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. == See also ==