Indonesian capital airport opens new terminal to ease crowding of passengers

A passenger walks inside the new Terminal 3 at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Banten province, Indonesia, Aug 9, 2016. The new terminal officially opened to public on Tuesday. [Photo/Xinhua]

JAKARTA - The Indonesian capital's main airport on Tuesday opened a new terminal to ease the air travel pressure brought about by the increasing number of passengers.

The 560-million-US-dollar new terminal will allow the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport to accommodate 25 million more passengers a year once it fully comes into operation by next March.

As the world biggest archipelago nation and the top economy in Southeast Asia, Indonesia is facing a soaring number of air passengers, while the ageing infrastructure is struggling to keep up.

The airport operator and the government voiced hope that the newly-opened terminal will help change the situation.

"This terminal was built to change the image of the capital Jakarta," Budi Karya Sumadi, Indonesia's transport minister and former president of the airport company, told reporters.