Pope Francis arrives in Indonesia to begin Asia-Pacific tour

Dozens of excited Indonesians waved at a motorcade carrying Pope Francis through the capital as he began the first leg of an ambitious Asia-Pacific tour on Tuesday, expected to urge global action on climate change as part of his longest trip yet.

The 87-year-old pontiff, who will also visit East Timor, Singapore and Papua New Guinea over the next 10 days, was seated in a wheelchair as a lift disembarked him from a chartered aircraft at Jakarta airport.

Two children in traditional clothes presented a bouquet of local produce before the pope was greeted by Indonesia's religious affairs minister, its Vatican envoy and several of its bishops on a red carpet flanked by honour guards.

Francis then drove off in a waiting car, waving and smiling. As his motorcade passed through Jakarta, small crowds of people were seen waving excitedly.

The ageing pope is not set to attend any public events on Tuesday, to allow him time for rest after the 13-hour overnight flight from Rome.

The pontiff is set to travel nearly 33,000 km (21,000 miles) on the 12 days of the Asia-Pacific tour, before he arrives back in Rome late in the evening of September 13.

At the beginning of his flight to Jakarta, Francis spent roughly half an hour individually greeting the accompanying journalists, leaning on a cane as he walked slowly around the back of the aircraft, chatting and shaking hands.

He offered only a few words about the trip, except for saying the coming days would represent his longest voyage abroad.