HI Uplift: Heli missions in Indonesia – the land of 17,500 islands

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by Mike Stones

3 November 2025

Saladin Siregar explains the growth in Indonesian charters. (Photocredit: Chapman Freeborn).

Indonesia is huge. Think thousands of islands (including Komodo), the world’s fourth biggest population, at 280m people, and its third longest coastline of 34,000m (54,716km). It also has the world’s seventh largest economy; measured by gross domestic product.

So, it’s not surprising that civil helicopters are helping to develop the nation’s growing economy. Global charter specialist Chapman Freeborn is playing a key role in that progress.

Saladin Siregar, key account management for Passenger Air Chartering, APAC at global charter specialist Chapman Freeborn explains how geography helps to make the case for helicopter transport. “Indonesia is vast and its geography is complex and unique,” he says. “It is a country of over 17,000 islands, and many locations are extremely remote and difficult to access due to challenging terrain.” In many Indonesian locations, where road or sea connections are impractical, point-to-point helicopter transport is often the best option.

It’s not just in rural areas that helicopter charter demand is rising. “In congested cities, helicopters provide faster and more reliable travel, which makes passenger helicopter charters popular with both businesses and tourists,” says Siregar. “In terms of the business sector, executives and project teams are making use of Chapman Freeborn’s chartering services.”

Jakarta and Bali are said to be hotspots for VIP and executive helicopter transport.

Utility missions

But executive transport and tourism are not the leading sectors fuelling demand for helicopter charters, Chapman Freeborn’s Grendilaxrama Wahid tells us. “The majority of helicopter charter is dedicated to utility missions serving projects in oil and gas and mining in remote areas and agriculture,” says Wahid, key account manager Cargo Airchartering – ASEAN for the company.

“The rest of the fleet is servicing VIP/Corporate/Tourism sector flights. But it [helicopter missions] heavily leans towards utility projects, rather than passenger transport utilisation.”

Uncovering current statistics for the civilian helicopter is challenging. But fleet growth in civil turbine helicopters in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region is thought to have shown steady growth over the past decade. Between 2014 and 2024, it expanded from 3,287 up to 4,131 units with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.3%, according to research Asian Sky Group.

At 154, Indonesia’s civil helicopter fleet represents 3.7% of the region’s total and is the largest fleet in Southeast Asia.

There are also a small number of Emergency Medical Services (EMS), Search and Rescue (SAR), law enforcement, and training flights. The recent Blueberry Aviation 2025 HEMS Market Report identified 194 EMS helicopters in Eastern Asia and 114 in Australia.

Of the general civil fleet, Bell Textron, Airbus Helicopters and Leonardo Helicopters account for the majority of the assets, says Wahid.

Heavy industry

Returning to the growing popularity of helicopter utility flights, Chapman Freeborn attributes demand to the expansion of heavy industry, often in remote areas. Last year, there were more than 4,600 active mining permits in Indonesia, says Siregar. “There are thousands of energy facilities and power plants spread across the country, including many small diesel plants and multiple oil and gas facilities. Many industrial sectors are expanding,” he explains.

For example, there’s significant growth in nickel and copper smelters, and in refineries in difficult to access areas. “The transportation of mission-critical crew and cargo to these sites is often time sensitive, making helicopter charters the most viable and convenient option,” he says.

Growth in helicopter charter demand in Indonesia is predicted to continue over at least the medium term. “We expect industrial growth in the country to continue and infrastructure challenges to persist,” says Siregar. “Based on this scenario, we expect to see a further increase in passenger and cargo helicopter charter demand over the next five years. Plus we are also looking at opportunities to expand passenger air chartering services for the corporate and VIP vertical services.”

As Indonesia’s civil helicopter market continues to grow, Wahid sees a complementary demand for rotary maintenance, overall and repair (MRO) facilities throughout the nation. “Currently, we have okay availability for servicing all aircrafts in Indonesia,” he tells us. “But in my opinion, there is still high potential for MRO industry in Indonesia.”

MRO industry

Wahid is less optimistic about the prospect of eVTOLs making a meaningful contribution to the growth of the Indonesian economy in the foreseeable future. “The technology and economic perspectives are promising, especially for cargo sector, but collaboration between all stakeholders would be the challenge,” says Wahid.

Nevertheless, helicopters add up to a compelling transport proposition for Indonesia, judges the charter specialist. “Whether it is tourism, corporate travel or accessing remote industrial facilities, helicopters provide unmatched access and flexibility. They help executives avoid city congestion and enable teams to mobilise rapidly to remote industrial sites,” says Siregar.

Meanwhile, if you’re holidaying in Indonesia, it would be a shame to miss the breath-taking scenery and island access that tourist helicopters can provide. But if one of those islands happens to be Komodo – home to the infamous dragons – watch your step with the local wildlife.

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