in brief
- The closure of eight airports has affected at least 170,000 passengers across 1,558 cancelled flights.
- Qantas released a statement on Monday confirming that multiple flights serving the popular holiday destination had been affected.
An erupting volcano in Indonesia has prompted the cancellation of all flights at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and disrupted other domestic airports as ash drifts across western parts of the country.
Jakarta's main airport and three others extended their closure to 6pm on Monday local time (9pm AEST), leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded.
"In connection with the increasing eruption activity of Mount Anak Krakatau, flight operations at several airports have been suspended; passengers are advised to regularly monitor their flight status with the respective airlines," airport operator Angkasa Pura said in a social media post.
Qantas released a statement on Monday confirming that multiple flights serving the popular holiday destination had been affected.
The volcanic island of Anak Krakatau, in Indonesia's Sunda Strait between the main Java and Sumatra islands, had shown signs of activity since Friday before erupting for 30 seconds early on Sunday and for 16 seconds about three hours later, Indonesia's Geological Agency said.
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No casualties were reported and no evacuation order was issued.
The nearest settlement is more than 16km away, but authorities warned residents and visitors to stay at least 3km from the active crater.
Volcanic ash spread across parts of Jakarta and Lampung province on Sumatra's southern tip, Indonesia's Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation said.
AirNav Indonesia closed airspace around Soekarno-Hatta and Halim Perdanakusuma airports in Jakarta, as well as at six other airports, including Radin Inten II Airport in Lampung, due to volcanic ash.
By Sunday evening, the closure of eight airports had affected 170,000 passengers across 1,558 cancelled flights, including 963 at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta airport alone.
'Safety' the top priority
Indonesia's directorate general of civil aviation said it was closely monitoring the eruption's impact on air travel and co-ordinating with airlines, airport operators, air navigation services and the meteorology agency.
"Safety remains our top priority in every operational decision," Lukman F Laisa said in a statement.
He warned flight schedules could face cascading disruptions affecting aircraft rotations, fleet availability and terminal capacity as airlines work to restore operations.
The eruption also disrupted services at Bali's Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport and at Medan.
Indonesia's volcanology agency and the Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre identified two ash clouds using satellite imagery.
One plume rose to 6,100m and drifted northeast over Jakarta, Banten, West Java and nearby waters.
A second cloud reached 15,200m and spread over parts of Banten, Lampung and Bengkulu provinces, the southern Sunda Strait and sections of the Indian Ocean west of Sumatra.
Lana Saria, head of Indonesia's Geological Agency, said activity at Anak Krakatau has intensified since July, with Sunday's eruption the strongest during that period.
The repeated eruptions indicate a continued supply of magma and volcanic gases beneath the volcano, she said, though officials can't predict whether a larger eruption will occur.
"We continue to evaluate the volcano's development based on all monitoring data, not solely on the number of eruptions or the height of the ash column," Saria said in a video briefing.
The main hazards include volcanic ash, high concentrations of gas and the ejection of hot rocks and other material around the crater area.
— With additional reporting by Agence France Presse.
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