*     *     *     *     *

     Balikpapan, Island of Borneo, Republic of Indonesia

     Monday, 29^th November 1993

     After reaching cruise altitude and halfway across the Makassar Strait, the cloud cover below our 737 broke up and I became aware of Borneo’s east coast looming up ahead of us in the distance.

     Borneo is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia; located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and east of Sumatra.  The island is also politically divided among three countries: Malaysia and Brunei in the north, with Indonesia to the south.  Approximately 73% of the island is Indonesian territory; plus being home to one of the oldest rainforests in the world.

     Balikpapan is a seaport city on the east coast of Borneo with two harbors.  Originally it was a quiet Bugis fishing village until 1897 when oil was discovered – leading to the huge oil boom of the early 1900s.

     On 24th January 1942 the Japanese army invaded and, after a sharp-short fight, defeated the Dutch garrison.  The defenders had partially destroyed the oil refinery and other facilities, prompting the Japanese to massacre many of the Europeans they had captured.  It wasn’t until 1945 that the Battle of Balikpapan was fought, and Allied Forces took control of Borneo Island.  Extensive wartime damage curtailed almost all oil production, until Royal Dutch Shell completed major repairs in 1950.

     In 1958 Balikpapan was also attacked by a CIA operated B-26 in order to stop oil exports in support of the Permesta Rebels.  However, on 18 May Indonesian naval and air forces shot down a B-26 and captured its CIA pilot.

     In fear of international opinion, the US immediately withdrew support for the Permesta Rebels, whose rebellion rapidly diminished thereafter.

     We covered the 209 miles from Palu to Balikpapan in just forty-eight minutes, touching down on a taxiway.

     Oh yes, dear reader, I said taxiway!

     Sepinggan Airport was having its runway (070°/250° magnetic, NE/SW) overhauled and extended, thus closing it.  So they hastily turned the parallel taxiway into a very short runway at 5,979 feet.

     In future, on a rainy morning, I would perform the best landing of my career, touching down smooth as silk on Runway Seven’s Taxiway, smack on the Taxiway’s threshold in an attempt to use every square foot of this short, wet Taxiway.  Except, as the main wheels smoothly made contact behind me, I heard and felt a “CRUNCH!”

     They had installed these temporary runway threshold lights, which stood roughly 1.5 feet above the Taxiway’s surface. 

     My main wheels had neatly decapitated two of the lights, similar to a guillotine.  I ran a thorough post-flight inspection of my main wheels, but couldn’t detect any damaged whatsoever.  The control tower ran a form to the cockpit for me to fill out, asking my written suggestion as to how this accident could be avoided in the future.  I suggested lowering the threshold lights flush with the Taxiway’s surface.  I never heard anything more about this incident. 

The Airport after they finished the work on Runway Seven. 

Balikpapan:

I got crabs at Balikpapan.

The family that rides together...dies together.

     After an hour on the ground, at Balikpapan, we pressed on to Banjarmasin.

              *     *     *     *     *