TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport temporarily stops 84 flights on Sunday March 14, in commemoration of Nyepi’s 1943 Saka New Year, or the Day of Silence. The airport will shut down for 24 hours from 6 a.m. on Sunday until 6 a.m. the next day, March 15.

“We have coordinated with relevant stakeholders, mainly airliners,” Angkasa Pura I national airport operator Faik Fahmi said in a press release on Saturday March 13.

He made sure that airliners would adapt to the policy by not selling tickets to and from Bali during Nyepi. The flight authority has also informed global aviation about this, although there are no international flights to Bali during the pandemic. Fahmi said the airport will still serve emergency flights.

Based on airport data, out of 84 flights on the Bali route, 41 are arrival flights and 43 are departure flights. Garuda Indonesia is the most affected with 23 flights, followed by Citilink and Wings Air with 18 and 12 flights respectively.

Over the past two days, Angkasa Pura I has seen an increase in the number of passengers arriving or departing from Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport. On March 11, the number of passengers was recorded at 87,287 people, an increase of 4% from the previous day to 83,896 passengers. Meanwhile, there was a 29 percent increase on March 10, compared to the previous day.

Read: Bali Airport to Close 24/7 on Nyepi Day

Francisca Christy Rosana