REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JEMBER -- The Notohadinegoro Airport in Jember District, East Java, operated normally on Wednesday amid Mount Bromo's ongoing volcanic activity that has disrupted commercial flight operations at Abdul Rahman Saleh Airport, Malang, over the past few days.

"The Notohadinegoro Airport remains safe from the volcanic ash spewed by Mount Bromo," the airport chief Edi Purnomo stated here on Wednesday when questioned about the impacts of Mount Bromo's eruptions on the airport's operations.

Despite favorable conditions, the Notohadinegoro Airport authorities remain vigilant to the volcanic activities of the 2,329-meter-high mountain as the Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG) has raised the alert status to Level III, which has come into effect since December 4.

According to Purnomo, the national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia and private operator Susi Air had even operated on the Surabaya-Jember and Jember-Sumenep routes, with sufficient number of passengers.

"The number of passengers getting aboard their chosen aircraft remains stable, with flight occupancy reaching about 60 to 70 percent," he added.

Due to the eruptions of Mount Bromo, which is situated on the border of Probolinggo, Pasuruan, Malang, and Lumajang Districts, the Abdul Rahman Saleh Airport in the East Java city of Malang was closed on December 11-13.

The volcanic ash, which reduced visibility and threatened aviation safety, had also forced commercial flights to be diverted from the Abdul Rahman Saleh Airport to Juanda International Airport in Surabaya, East Java Province's capital city, on Tuesday.

Prior to the eruptions, Mount Bromo was one of the tourist sites frequented by local and foreign tourists.

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