Garuda Indonesia is the flag carrier of Indonesia. Named after the holy bird Garuda of Hinduism and Buddhism, the airline is headquartered at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, near Jakarta. Founded in 1949 as KLM Interinsulair Bedrijf, the airline is now one of the world's leading airlines and the 20th member of the global airline alliance SkyTeam. It operates regular scheduled flights to a number of destinations in Southeast Asia, East Asia, Australia and Europe from its main hub in Jakarta, Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, as well as services to Australia and Asia from Ngurah Rai International Airport (Bali) and a large number of domestic flights from both Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport (Makassar) and Kuala Namu International Airport (Medan). After a series of financial and operational difficulties in the late 1990s and early 2000s, including the in-flight murder of a human rights activist by a pilot and several executives, the airline undertook a five-year modernization plan in 2009 known as the Quantum Leap, which brought with it a new livery, logo, uniforms and brand, as well as newer, more modern aircraft and facilities and a renewed focus on international markets. The airline also operated a budget subsidiary Citilink which provides low-cost flights to multiple Indonesian destinations and was spun-off in 2012. At the 2010 Farnborough Airshow, Garuda announced an order for another six A330-200 airliners. According to Garuda Indonesia’s Technical Director, Garuda Indonesia planned to buy nine Boeing 737-800s and two Airbus 330-200s in 2011. With aims to improve flight capacity and frequency to eastern Indonesia, Garuda Indonesia opened a third hub located at the Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport, Makassar, South Sulawesi from 1 June 2011. The company's first two hubs are Soekarno-Hatta International Airport (Cengkareng, Jakarta), and Ngurah Rai International Airport (Denpasar, Bali). Garuda Indonesia is increasing the flight frequency of its domestic and international routes. Of the international routes, Garuda is increasing its frequency of Jakarta-Singapore to 8 times daily with a Boeing 737-800, Jakarta-Bangkok to 3 times daily with a Boeing 737-800, Jakarta-Hong Kong to 2 times daily with an A330-200 and a Boeing 737-800, Jakarta-Beijing to 5 times weekly with an Airbus A330-300 and an A330-200, Jakarta-Shanghai to 5 times weekly with an A330-200 and an Airbus A330-300, and Denpasar-Seoul to 5 times weekly with a Boeing 747-400 and an A330-300. The airline resumed service to Taipei from Jakarta on 25 May 2012. At the Paris Air Show 2011, Garuda Indonesia announced a firm order of 25 Airbus A320s with an option for another 25. All 25 Airbus A320s are to be used by their subsidiary, Citilink The Airline made its debut on the Indonesia Stock Exchange in February 2011, with the government of Indonesian retaining a majority of the shares. PT Trans Airways bought 10.9 percent stake of Garuda Indonesia unsold IPO shares from underwriters in 27 April 2012. The transaction was valued at Rp 1.53 trillion ($166.8 million). Garuda Indonesia is officially rated as a 5-star airline by Skytrax along with 7 other airlines in the world.

• published: 07 Aug 2015
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