Garuda Indonesia Continues to Fly High

Garuda Indonesia is the national airline of Indonesia and currently operates as a full-service network carrier serving 33 domestic cities within Indonesia and 26 international cities throughout Australia, South-East Asia, East Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Australia. 

It is headquartered at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, near Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, and the airline also has a hub at Ngurah Rai International Airport, Bali..

It is named after the mystical giant bird Garuda of Hinduism and Buddhist mythology. According to the sacred texts of Hinduism and Hindu mythology, Garuda is the carrier of the God Vishn. A representation of Garuda appears in the National Emblem of Indonesia, Garuda Pancasila.

In 2009, Garuda Indonesia was awarded the prestigious four-star airline rating by SKYTRAX and more 

recently awarded Garuda Indonesia as the "world's most improved airline" in 2010.

From its humble beginnings in 1949, Garuda Indonesia has transformed into Indonesia's leading carrier and continues to fly ever higher. In 2010 Garuda Indonesia launched its new service concept - the Garuda Indonesia Experience; a concept which aims to deliver authentic Indonesian hospitality for all passengers.

Busy business executives will appreciate Garuda's fully appointed executive lounges with office and relaxation facilities such as Internet access, conference rooms, televisions and comfortable chairs available at several airports across Indonesia.

For those seeking even more freedom to conduct business without worrying about flight times and requirements, Garuda Indonesia's new valet service allows business class travellers to take full advantage of the executive lounge while Garuda Indonesia's friendly valet staff handle all check-in details on their behalf.

Garuda Indonesia's city check-in service allows passengers to check-in up to four hours before departure at counters located in 26 cities throughout Indonesia and in five international cities. This eliminates the need to arrive early at the airport to wait in the queue at the check-in line.

Most Garuda Indonesia shares are owned by the Indonesian government and the  airline employs more than 6,000 staff.

Garuda Indonesia is keen to continue on its fleet expansion plan and add more flights while improving service performance to maintain passenger loyalty.

Garuda president director Emirsyah Satar said at a recent press conference that the airline would stick to its current business plan, including offering daily flights to Shanghai and more frequent flights to Melbourne, as the company had nearly finished adding 11 new airplanes — nine Boeing 737-800NG narrowbody airplanes and two Airbus A330 widebody airplanes — to its fleet.

“We are now waiting for the arrival of one more Airbus A330 and two more Boeing 737-800NGs in December. We hope the new planes will not only add to our seat capacity but also make our operating cost more efficient,” he said.

Currently, Garuda offers 402 flights a day, including 32 flights served by Citilink, the flag carrier’s strategic business unit focusing on low-cost carrier business.

According to its “Quantum Leap” strategy, Garuda plans to increase its fleet to 116 aircraft in 2014, the number of passengers it carries to 27.6 million in 2014 from 10.3 million in 2008, and raise its operating revenue from Rp 18.1 trillion in 2008 to Rp 57.9 trillion in 2014.