Garuda unveils new fleet, corporate indentity

SINGAPORE – Indonesia’s national carrier, Garuda Indonesia, has unveiled a new aircraft fleet, new in-flight product and a fresh corporate identity to mark the start of the next phase of its transformation into one of Asia’s most successful and profitable airlines. The launch of the “Nature’s Wing” livery on Garuda Indonesia’s new Airbus A330-200 and Boeing 737-800NG (Next Generation) aircraft coincided with the opening of its new headquarters building near Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta. Both events symbolise the success of Garuda Indonesia’s transformation strategy, which saw it report a net profit of IDR669 billion (US$65.2 million) in 2008, despite the severe economic conditions affecting the global airline industry. The introduction of the A330-200s and Boeing 737-800NGs is part of a plan to more than double the Garuda Indonesia fleet to 116 aircraft over the next five years, and to increase the number of its international departures by more than 300 percent to 1,222 per week by 2014. Garuda Indonesia received its IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) certification in May 2008, recognising that the airline is fully compliant with global “best-practice” standards for flight operations, aircraft maintenance and safety management systems. IATA, the global association for the world’s scheduled airlines, requires all its members to pass regular IOSA safety checks, which are conducted by independent IATA-approved auditors.