Indonesia's DEO Sorong Airport Meets International Standards but Lacks Scheduled Foreign Routes, Regulator Says

Asep Sukarjo, head of the DEO Sorong airport regulator office, said on 17 September that Domine Eduard Osok Airport (DEO) in Sorong, Papua Barat Daya, meets facility and administrative requirements for regular international flights, but that route decisions rest with airlines and the transport ministry rather than the airport authority. Speaking after the National Transportation Day ceremony at the airport, he noted that airlines must file flight plans with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation at the Ministry of Transportation, and that the airport unit has no authority over carrier selection, destination countries or schedules, adding that the absence of scheduled international service reflects commercial decisions by operators rather than any deficiency in airport facilities.

DEO was designated an international airport in 2025, yet no scheduled foreign route has operated since. Asep cited a charter record as evidence of administrative readiness: three charter flights between Darwin, Australia, and Sorong, and one flight from Haneda, Japan, in December 2025. The first domestic-carrier international charter at the airport took place on 28 February 2026, when Garuda Indonesia flew 122 Australian passengers from Darwin to Sorong, with customs officers processing arrivals and the governor of Papua Barat Daya and national legislator Rico Sia present.

Yusdi Lamatenggo, head of the provincial tourism and creative economy office, said foreign charters had been arriving at DEO since 2014, previously on private jets, and that the Garuda Indonesia flight was the first by a domestic airline since the airport's 2025 international designation, with his office hoping charter activity would develop into regular scheduled international service. No airline has announced a scheduled international route to Sorong, and neither the regulator nor the provincial government has published demand figures.