Rendani Airport

Rendani Airport (IATA: MKW, ICAO: WAUU) is a domestic airport serving Manokwari, the capital and largest town of West Papua province in Western New Guinea, Indonesia. Located about 3 km (1.86 miles) from the city center, it serves as the main gateway to Manokwari and its surrounding regions, as well as to much of West Papua, particularly the eastern part of the Bird’s Head Peninsula. It is the second-busiest airport on the Bird’s Head Peninsula, after Domine Eduard Osok Airport in Sorong. The airport operates flights to major cities in Western New Guinea, such as Jayapura, Nabire and Sorong, as well as to Makassar in South Sulawesi. In addition, it functions as a hub for pioneer routes to smaller towns, including Fakfak and Kaimana, and other remote areas of West Papua, where air transport is often the only means of access.

History

Colonial era

Prior to the construction of the airport, the land on which Rendani Airport now stands was customary land owned by three Papuan tribes inhabiting the Manokwari area: the Arfak, Doreri, and Boray. To this day, these communities continue to seek compensation from the Indonesian government for the use of their land for the airport’s development.

Rendani Airport was initially constructed by Japanese occupation forces as a military airstrip during the occupation of the Dutch East Indies between 1942 and 1943, as part of the Pacific Theatre of World War II to support operations against Allied forces. It was built with a single runway parallel to the coast, along with taxiways and revetments. The airfield was considered strategic by the Japanese due to its location along the coast of Geelvink Bay, which made it a key chokepoint for Allied advances into the rest of the Dutch East Indies.