Garuda Indonesia Colours Magazine February 2018 | Page 6

4
Salam Garuda Indonesia
SALAM
GARUDA INDONESIA
Pahala N. Mansury
President & CEO
PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk.
Dear valued Garuda Indonesia customers,
On behalf of Garuda Indonesia
management, I would like to welcome you
on-board this Garuda Indonesia flight.
As part of our efforts to make your travels
even more convenient, to expand our
route options for passengers and to
enhance air transport connectivity for
national tourism destinations,
Garuda Indonesia introduced several
new routes towards the end of 2017 and
in the month of January, including
those connecting Kendari–Wangi-wangi
and Makassar–Palembang.
The Kendari–Wangi-wangi route flies four
times weekly using the ATR 72-600
aircraft, while Makassar–Palembang
utilises the Bombardier CRJ-1000 aircraft.
As well as improving domestic
connectivity, at the end of January we
launched new direct services to China
with Denpasar–Xi’an and Denpasar–
Zhengzhou flights. These new flights are
part of the company’s programme to
maximise the Chinese market’s potential,
which has grown increasingly promising
in line with the market’s role in
Garuda Indonesia’s international network.
Each of these routes utilises our Airbus
A330-300 fleet, flying Denpasar–Xi’an
twice weekly and Denpasar–Zhengzhou
three times weekly.
The commencement of these new flights
not only expands Garuda Indonesia’s
network but also supports the Indonesian
government’s initiatives, particularly
the Ministry of Transportation in
boosting connectivity between the
archipelago’s many regions and the
Ministry of Tourism in achieving its target
of 20 million tourists in 2019.
We have also recently welcomed the
first of our new Boeing 737 MAX 8 fleet,
which will comprise 50 aircraft, as
Garuda Indonesia looks to boost its fleet
revitalisation programme. The Boeing 737
MAX 8 is a narrow-body aircraft, produced
as the fourth-generation Boeing 737.
The arrival of this aircraft is in line with
the company’s plans to conduct fleet
optimisation through continuous and
sustainable fleet revitalisation efforts,
which, it is hoped, will further refine the
company’s operations and especially
help Garuda Indonesia in achieving
operational excellence.
The Boeing 737 MAX 8 will replace the
company’s fleet of Boeing 737-800 NG and
we will be utilising these new aircraft on
short-haul and medium-haul routes, both
domestic and international.
Last but not least, we would like to thank
you, our customers, for choosing to fly
Garuda Indonesia.