Airline Garuda Indonesia joins Skyteam

Garuda Indonesia,  the
flag carrier of Indonesia, has joined SkyTeam as its 20th member and second
airline from Southeast Asia.

Garuda’s membership adds Jakarta as an alternative gateway
to and from south-east Asia, as well as 40 new destinations to SkyTeam’s global
network served uniquely by the alliance.

It’s a road which the airline must take one step at a time, but
his goal is for Garuda “to become one of the best airline in the world.”

Signing up with SkyTeam is part of that journey  that “will fortify our position as a global
player, and bring Garuda into the global arena (with) global standards”, says
Garuda Indonesia CEO Emirsyah Satar. 
as he enters the final year of a five-year ‘Quantum Leap’ expansion plan
which began in 2009 to add new planes, new routes and improve service.

“Garuda Indonesia is proud to connect SkyTeam’s global
extensive network to one of the largest economies in south-east Asia via its
hubs in Jakarta, Denpasar, Makassar, Medan, Surabaya, and Balikpapan,” said
Satar.

“Garuda’s entry into the alliance will give its customers
access to SkyTeam’s 1,064 destinations, covering over 90 per cent of the most
relevant traffic flows in the world,” said Michael Wisbrun, SkyTeam managing
director.

“Garuda strengthens our presence throughout the Asia Pacific
region for our 588 Million global passengers.”

Garuda flies to 64 destinations in 12 countries, including 40
domestic destinations. SkyTeam customers from every continent will benefit from
easier access to Indonesia’s key business and tourism destinations, facilitated
by Garuda’s partnerships with alliance members.

The airline boosts SkyTeam’s presence in Australia with
service to Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney; and in Tokyo with flights to
both Narita and Haneda airports. Garuda will increase its service to Europe in
May this year with a new route between Jakarta and London’s Gatwick airport.