Two Jakarta-Jambi Flights Diverted to Batam and Palembang as Haze Cuts Visibility at Jambi Airport

Two flights from Jakarta to Jambi diverted on August 23, 2026, after haze cut visibility at Sultan Thaha Saifuddin Airport to 1,000 meters.

Original report
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Industry impact

The diversions show how localized haze events can rapidly disrupt regional airport operations, forcing carriers to reroute aircraft and delay passengers with little warning.

Two flights from Jakarta bound for Jambi were diverted on August 23, 2026, after thick haze reduced visibility at Sultan Thaha Saifuddin Airport to 1,000 meters, making landing unsafe. Ardon Marbun, General Manager of PT Angkasa Pura at Sultan Thaha Saifuddin Airport, confirmed the diversions.

Batik Air flight ID 6804, an Airbus A320 registered PK-LAT and captained by Kemas Muhammad Fatur, carried 138 adults and one infant and was scheduled to land at 10:00 WIB with an estimated arrival of 10:40 WIB; Air Traffic Control informed the crew at 10:45 WIB that it would divert to Batam. Super Air Jet IU 842, an Airbus A320 registered PK-STZ flying from Jakarta (CGK) to Jambi (DJB) with 120 adults and one child, was scheduled to land at 11:25 WIB and was diverted to Palembang after conditions failed to improve.

Ardon said visibility at Sultan Thaha Airport was about 5,000 meters at 09:30 WIB, within the safe range, before falling to 1,000 meters by 10:30 WIB and remaining there until 11:30 WIB, after which it recovered to 3,500 meters. A Garuda Indonesia flight from Jakarta landed successfully at Jambi at 13:44 WIB, the only aircraft to do so that day, while the two diverted flights had not yet landed at Sultan Thaha Airport at the time of reporting.