Garuda Indonesia have advised strong passenger numbers from Australia have prompted the airline to add extra flights to Asian destinations beyond Jakarta.
Garuda Indonesia have advised strong passenger numbers from Australia have prompted the airline to add extra flights to Asian destinations beyond Jakarta.
As part of the changes, Garuda says it will operate double daily services from the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to Hong Kong and Bangkok from June 16.
Garuda senior general manager for Australia and South West Pacific Bagus Siregar said passenger traffic from Australia to Hong Kong increased 7.2 per cent in the three months to March 31 compared with the prior corresponding period.
Similarly, traffic to Malaysia had increased 6.4 per cent Mr Siregar said, quoting Australian Bureau of Statistics' data.
"Garuda Indonesia will be making a more concerted effort to effectively service not only Jakarta - Asia's newest gateway - but also several other key cities within North and South East Asia," Mr Siregar said in a statement.
The Indonesian national carrier said it was on track to add another 11 aircraft - two wide bodied Airbus A330s and nine single-aisle Boeing 737s - to its fleet before the end of calendar 2011.
Garuda, which flies to Melbourne, Perth and Sydney from Jakarta and Denpasar, said the airline's passenger numbers had grown 42 per cent in the March quarter, compared with the prior corresponding period, with yields up 2.9 per cent.
http://www.smh.com.au/business/garuda-plans-asian-expansion-20110616-1g4hl.html for further details.