Pelabuhan Ratu Airport

The closure was due to a combination of economic factors. As a 'pioneer' (perintis) airstrip, its operations were dependent on government-subsidized routes and charter flights. The cessation of these flights, coupled with significant improvements in road infrastructure connecting Pelabuhan Ratu to major cities like Jakarta and Bandung, rendered the small airstrip economically unviable and obsolete.

The airport is permanently closed and the site has been completely repurposed. Satellite imagery and local reports confirm that the former runway and airport grounds are now occupied by various developments. These include government buildings (specifically the 'Pusat Unggulan Inovasi Kelautan dan Perikanan' - Center for Innovation Excellence in Marine and Fisheries), a local market, public roads, and residential housing. While the faint outline of the runway is still visible from the air, it is heavily encroached upon and unusable for any aviation activity.

Pelabuhan Ratu Airport was a pioneer airstrip ('lapangan terbang perintis') established to support the tourism industry in the Pelabuhan Ratu area, a popular coastal destination in West Java. It primarily handled small, short-takeoff-and-landing (STOL) propeller aircraft, such as the de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter or Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander. Operations were likely focused on charter services (e.g., by Pelita Air Service) and subsidized regional flights connecting to Jakarta. Its existence was crucial for providing faster access for tourists and officials to the region's resorts, like the state-owned Samudra Beach Hotel, before modern highways were developed.

There are zero prospects for reopening the original Pelabuhan Ratu Airport at its former location. The land has been irreversibly developed for other uses. However, there have been long-standing government plans to build a new, modern airport to serve the greater Sukabumi Regency and the Pelabuhan Ratu tourism area. This project is for a new airport at a different location, primarily in Cikembar District, and is not a reactivation of the old airstrip. The new airport project has faced numerous delays related to funding and land acquisition.