Geography of Indonesia
Indonesia is an archipelagic country extending about from east to west and from north to south. According to a geospatial survey conducted between 2007 and 2010 by National Coordinating Agency for Survey and Mapping (Bakosurtanal), Indonesia has 13,466 islands. While earlier survey conducted in 2002 by National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) stated Indonesia has 18,307 islands. According to the CIA World Factbook, there are 17,508 islands. The discrepancy between the surveys is likely caused by the earlier different survey method including tidal islands, sandy cays and rocky reefs that surface during low tide and submerge during high tide. There are 8,844 named islands according to estimates made by the government of Indonesia, with 922 of those are permanently inhabited. It comprises five main islands: Sumatra, Java, Borneo (known as "Kalimantan" in Indonesia), Sulawesi, and New Guinea; two major island groups (Nusa Tenggara and the Maluku Islands) and sixty smaller island groups. Four of the islands are shared with other countries: Borneo is shared with Malaysia and Brunei; Sebatik, located off the northeastern coast of Kalimantan, shared with Malaysia; Timor is shared with East Timor; and the newly divided provinces of Papua and West Papua share the island of New Guinea with Papua New Guinea.
Aviation in Indonesia
As of 2013, there are 673 airports in Indonesia, ranging from grand international airports to modest unpaved airstrips on remote islands or inland interior areas located throughout the archipelago. In November 2011, Indonesia had more than 230 conventional airports, most of them operated by Transportation Ministry technical operation units and state-owned PT Angkasa Pura I & II. Major airports are managed by Angkasa Pura; Angkasa Pura I operates 13 airports in Eastern Indonesia, while Angkasa Pura II operates 13 airports in Western Indonesia. After the 2000 aviation deregulation, Indonesian airports endured a surge of passengers, especially catalyzed by the advent of low-cost carriers. According to the Indonesian Transportation Ministry, 9 of the 13 airports managed by PT Angkasa Pura I have exceeded their passenger capacity.