Seaplane Base Site Selection Using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) for Amphibian Plane Test Flight and Operation

The development of amphibious aircraft (N219 Amphibian) in Indonesia requires seaplane base facilities to conduct a flight testing and the selection of seaplane base location becomes more important parameter of the development. This study aims to determine the proper location for the seaplane base that can be used for the flight testing of amphibious aircraft. The study used analytic hierarchy process (AHP) due to its compatibility to include multicriteria in decision making, with consideration of four main criteria, i.e technical, operational, territorial, and cost criteria to assess the alternative locations. The results of the AHP model show that the visibility criterion is selected as the most critical criterion, since visibility play important part in the safety of plane operation. The evaluation of the location candidates indicates that the score for Panjang Island is 6.75, higher than Karimunjawa Island that only get 5.73. Thus, Panjang Island is deemed as more suitable location for the amphibious plane flight test. Therefore, this result can be used by the authority as a consideration in choosing the flight test location.