Garuda Indonesia to add more flights to Korea

Dewa Rai, Garuda Indonesia’s general manager for Korea

By Lee Hyo-sik

Garuda Indonesia plans to add two additional flights a week to its Incheon-Jakarta route to capitalize on the growing travel demand between Korea and Indonesia, according to the head of its operation here.

In a recent interview with The Korea Times, Dewa Rai, Garuda Indonesia’s general manager for Korea, also said Indonesia’s national carrier will not engage in a price war with Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, saying it will instead boost its brand awareness and offer the “right” products and services at a fair price to customers.

``We plan to add two more flights to our Incheon-Jakarta route, increasing the number of flights to nine per week,’’ Rai said. ``This is our preemptive move to take advantage of the growing number of business and leisure travelers between the two nations. We will try to offer what customers are looking for rather than lower ticket prices.’’

Garuda Indonesia, which began flying to Korea in 2008, currently flies daily between Incheon and Jakarta, and Incheon and Bali. The carrier, a member of the Sky-Team global alliance, operates an Airbus 330-200 aircraft capable of carrying 220 passengers. It takes about seven hours from Incheon to Jakarta or to Bali.

"The sinking of the ferry Sewol in April negatively affected our business as a fewer Koreans traveled overseas. But things began picking up in July and will likely get back to normal by the end of this year,’’ Rai said. ``The air traffic between Korea and Indonesia has increased in line with the growing political and economic ties. We expect the trend will continue down the road.’’

The general manager said the carrier’s occupancy ratio on the Incheon-Jakarta route averages about 70 percent all year around, adding that flights are almost full from July to August when many Koreans head overseas on summer vacation.

``About 65 percent of passengers on the Incheon-Jakarta route are business travelers, while the remaining 35 percent are either those who visit families and friends or leisure travelers,’’ he said. ``On the Incheon-Bali route, more of them are leisure travelers. This means that the occupancy rate fluctuates more widely on the Incheon-Bali route. It is really hard to fill the seats in September and November.’’

Rai said Garuda Indonesia needs to come up with measures to increase the number of passengers on the Incheon-Bali route during the low season. ``We are offering deep discounts to honeymooners and other leisure travelers to fly to the resort island in September and November. But we need a fundamental prescription to boost the demand.’’

In addition, the carrier has been promoting Jakarta International Airport as a transit hub in Southeast Asia. ``We offer very extensive connecting flights to cities in Southeast Asia and Northwestern Australia from Jakarta Airport. We would like Korean travelers to take our convenient connecting flights from Jakarta to other destinations,’’ the general manager said.

Migrant workers from Indonesia participate in a football match in a high school field in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, on Sept. 9. Garuda Indonesia organized the event to give the Indonesian workers, most of whom are employed at small manufacturing plants in the industrial city, a much-needed break during the Sept. 6-9 Chuseok holidays. / Courtesy of Garuda Indonesia

Competing with Korean Air, Asiana Airlines

Garuda Indonesia is not afraid of competing head-on with Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, Raid said, stressing that he is proud of what the carrier offers to customers. ``When Asiana launched the flight to Jakarta and Bali in July 2013, it adversely affected our business. We used to compete only with Korean Air, but now it is a three-way game. But I am confident that Garuda will emerge as a winner.’’

Korean Air flies 10 times a week to Jakarta and daily to Bali, while Asiana flies daily to Indonesia’s capital and twice a week to the resort island.

Garuda Indonesia has an immigration official onboard its flight on the Incheon-Jakarta route so Korean passengers can purchase a visa in the air and don’t have to go through the immigration process at the airport, according to Rai. "Koreans visiting Bali can get a visa upon arrival. It is very convenient for Korean nationals. We also serve kimchi and other Korean dishes as part of our in-flight meal, and have at least three Korean crews onboard to assist those who don’t speak English.”

The manager said Garuda does not want to engage in a price war with two Korean national carriers, stressing that the rate war will make all three carriers a loser. "We would like to get a fair price for what we offer. But these days, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines sell tickets at extremely low prices. Unfortunately, this forces us to lower prices to a certain degree,’’ he said. "Cutting prices to secure larger numbers of customers is not a good strategy because even though you transport many passengers, you get nothing out of it. The important thing is to generate profits. Maintaining handsome profitability is my top priority.’’

Garuda has been working hard to increase its brand awareness among Korean travelers, Rai said. "Besides sponsoring television programs that showcase Bali and other Indonesian tourist destinations, we will mobilize more resources for online promotion because it is a more effective tool, given the high number of smartphone users and the high Internet penetration here. Our online marketing will mainly target young travelers who are less loyal to national carriers.’’

The general manager then said Garuda wants to work together with Korean Air and Asiana Airlines to promote Indonesia as a tourist destination. ``It takes about seven hours to Jakarta or Bali from Korea, but it takes only about four to five hours to Thailand, Singapore and other Southeast Asian destinations. So distance is our constraint. To bring more Korean tourists into Indonesia, we would like to cooperate with the two national carriers. This will benefit all three of us.’’