On the Bali route Garuda would face competition from both Jetstar, which recently announced a reduction in flights to 7 per week, and AirAsia which is reported to be considering increasing flights. Both Kupang and Surabaya are currently unserviced.
Mr Satar says Garuda is looking at further expansion in Australia including Brisbane to Jakarta and Darwin to Bali, Surabaya or Kupang. Garuda suspended service to Darwin in 2009 but the Darwin market has since become more attractive given the rapid expansion of northern Australia’s oil and gas sector. Singapore Airlines (SIA) regional subsidiary SilkAir and more recently Philippine Airlines (PAL) and Malaysia Airlines (MAS) have all entered the Darwin market. “We are looking at it, but that Darwin traffic won’t be a feeder to the London route,” Mr Satar told CAPA. “It will be connected to Bali or Kupang or Surabaya.”
Bali is the most likely option as it will allow for connections from Darwin to Korea and Japan, growing markets which SilkAir/SIA, MAS and PAL have successfully targeted. Bali is the only Indonesian airport currently served from Darwin, with service from Indonesia AirAsia and Jetstar Airways.
Mr Satar says Garuda is also seeking to partner an Australian carrier to feed Darwin from regional destinations in northern Australia such as Alice Springs. “Before we go in, we need to make sure we can make those connections,” he says.