psidarta

Looks very much like GA's colour scheme! Is this their new seats by JPA Design?

Thanks Suzanne, I know it's thrice weekly on 247 but I could not find it on any of those days at around end od March...

Hi... Does anyone here know about whether MH184/5 KUL-CMB still going to operate through March/April next year? It's not showing on MH's website but is there on Wego. However, it's up there on MH website for current month travel. Thank you

In contrary to its parent company, Batik Air is officially the most on-time airline in Indonesia, and you start hearing more good things about them. Looking at their rate of fleet expansion and route planning, they've really been an airline to watch! Rusdi Kirana has been quoted as saying that Full-Service-Carriers are the next big thing and that simply signals his ambition for Batik Air! Not surprised if they suddenly apply for Batik Air Thailand!

Always excited about an airline's rebranding! I do think it's a very designed way to quietly commence a rebranding exercise... Quietly taking off the old ones and slowly giving hints that something new is about to come. It better be good though, the new branding, as it will be (or already been) very much anticipated.. Dragonair to Cathay Dragon came so suddenly they did not allow anybody to start expecting. New branding for MAB had been talked about for quite some time now, and still nothing happened prior to the going places-deliberation.

Yes I think CX popularize the super diamond when they introduced them on its 777s a few years back. GA is marketing this new offering as the first airline to install them on a regional A333. All the A333s they are due to receive this year will have the same seats installed but from what I've heard, the JPA designed cabin and seats will debut on their 737MAX in January 2017 and then introduced to the next A333 deliveries. So if I understand correctly, the A333s up to PK-GPY will not be retrofitted with new cabin interior / seats, PK-GPZ and the other three to be delivered in 2016 will have the standard super-diamond seats, and those delivered from 2017 will have the customized ones which, I believe, will be a modified version of the super diamond almost like the Porsche-modified super diamond for their A350s. The A333s have and will always be the workhorse of GA's regional and medium-haul operation so the decision to introduce the new seats to the remaining A333s does make a lot of sense to stay on-par with the offering from their legacy peers. GA has been rather quiet on the new seats, probably realizing that many of the peers have been using the same seat type and while they are still a damn-good choice of seat type for a regional A333s, it's not something too new. I'm pretty sure they will bomb the media at their early 2017 launch of the JPA designed cabins and modified seats, especially on the 737s (where biz class seats have been quite generic) and the newer A333s. Me looking forward to this year's Singapore Air Show where my gut feeling says they will announce the B789/A359 final decision and quite possibly, give some glimpses of their new upcoming JPA designed-cabins!

With all due respect to airfcraft interior manufacturers?, sometimes I do wonder how can an airline's interior be too different from another... Especially on an identical aircraft type and seat class... Apart from prestige and publicity stint. Good for GA though. http://thedesignair.net/2015/12/15/garuda-indonesia-appoints-jpa-design-to-create-new-business-and-economy-interiors/

Could it be for GA as part of 30 A359 in the LOI to prevent them from choosing the 789? They have been negotiating and GA is close to making a decision. I really doubt SQ would want to release any slots for EK!

Couldn't agree more! I think all these orders when confirmed, are for deliveries between 2021-2025 or even later. A long shot but they should've been financially more stable by then. Lots of them will be replacing current fleet though. But again, such order intents is massive for GA's scale of operation. Surely this was planned quite some time ago before the new management took over.

This is so unexpected, LoIs for 30 B789s and 30 A359s They said they're going to order 250 planes before 2025. That's 60 789/359, 80 B738MAX, 50 A320s. Another 60 to go... should be a top-up of A320NEOS, new regional jet orders, and/or ATRs. http://www.airbusgroup.com/int/en/news-media/press-releases/Airbus-Group/Financial_Communication/2015/06/20150615_airbus_garuda_a350.html

Fresh from the press: Garuda Indonesia aims to order 200-250 aircraft from 2014 -CEO BY SIVA GOVINDASAMY HONG KONG Thu Nov 14, 2013 5:20am EST Nov 14 (Reuters) - Indonesia's flag carrier Garuda Indonesia wants to add 200-250 aircraft over 2015-2025 to meet demand in one of the world's fastest-growing aviation markets, its chief executive said on Thursday. The airline wants to buy some directly from manufacturers and lease the remainder, Emirsyah Satar told Reuters on the sidelines of an industry event in Hong Kong. Garuda had 131 aircraft as at September-end. Existing orders and impending retirement will put the total at 194 in 2015. The airline intends to retire aircraft in the following years as it adds more planes, and aims for a fleet of 350-400 with an average age of six years by 2025, said Satar. Garuda is looking for single-aisle aircraft for routes of up to five hours, and larger wide-body aircraft for medium- and long-haul services, he said. Boeing Co's 737 Max and Airbus S.A.S.'s A320neo would satisfy Garuda's short haul needs. Boeing's 787 and 777 and Airbus' A350 could be contenders for its medium- and long-haul requirements. http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/14/garuda-orders-idUSL4N0IZ34820131114 Looks like A and B will be busy with their Southeast Asian customers. Bring on the shows...

No it is not heavier than a 777. From what I read in indoflyer, the runway is not strong enough for a fully loaded 777 with 314 pax, 11 tonne of cargo and fuel required to fly ultra long haul to London. They can still do the but with payload restrictions (-39 pax, -all cargo and a transit somewhere). No XWBs flies long haul from CGK, the furthest being a full 747 to JED. In a way it's logical and tecnically making a lot of sense but I really think this is not the only reason for the delay as such technical matters should and must have been understood far earlier. Most aviation enthusiasts in Indonesia believe the main reason is still business, where GA (finally, late as usual) realized that the 77W will make more money somewhere else. 2nd half of the year is traditionally a busy season for GA and the 77W could stand by for a more flexible utilizations (they will have 4 by year end). May 2014 is still almost a year away, and they will have that much time to further raise public awareness of the new route, more people would have sampled the revamped premium services and ample time to negotiate a Heathrow slot from future SkyTeam members (read: KL/AF) Now that all that's been said by the new marketing director Erik Meijer at the interview I mentioned in my previous post had been proven true, I think I am going to stick to my gut opinion that GA will indeed land at Heathrow as a SkyTeam member when they eventually fly to London come May 2014 (or later). Again, disappointing of GA but while London is never an ideal destination for them, May 2014 is a lot more ideal than November 2013 IF they really have to launch the route.

There is no statement or explanation whatsoever from the airline about the cancellation here in Indonesia as well, and I guess this topic has been rather hot only in forums. However, the signs of the route not going to materialize have actually been there from the beginning i.e. flights almost not bookable online, no straightforward marketing campaign for the route as yet, airline directors saying different dates of the first flight in some interviews etc. While many in Indonesia and Garuda lovers would love to see the route happens, I think the management is doing the right thing to postpone/cancel the route if the route is never going to work. A non-stop London flight, which is part of a Kangaroo route, on a spanking new premium 77W might sound very prestigious and will surely generate a lot of publicity but again, business calculation comes first and GA just cannot afford to waste the potential of their 77W on a route which is untested and probably not going to generate too much yield for them. The UK has never been a traditional strong market out of CGK, and with BA's rumoured return, the once exciting plan might sound too risky to proceed. With a new HND day-time slot in hand, a much improved performance on the CGK-AUH-AMS route, and encouraging SLF on their North Asian / Australian routes, GA do actually have many options for their flagship 77W instead of stretching it on London at the current period. Formal entry to Skyteam is not too far away, and they can always review the plan in the future when they have more planes and code-shares, and maybe considers a slot in LHR? Again, nobody knows the real reason behind the silent, apparent cancellation/postponement, but whatever the reason is, the logics have been there from the start that LON may not be the best step forward for GA at the moment. We'd rather read news about them sustaining their profits than GA-bashing articles about a financial bloodbath. (Believe) Those bankers at the helm have brought this airline back from the dead, they should know what to do with this one.

Somebody from Indoflyer has a picture of the incident. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BKt36_GCUAEX14n.jpg

GA's First Class Suite comes with sliding doors just like OZ, this ad confirmed. They are yet to announce the extra services for F passengers other than the already much publicized Free Wi-fi & In-Flight Broadband TV, Chef-on-Board, and Immigration-on-Board. Limousine service and private butler has been mentioned in other forum, among others that will include upgrades for the J passengers. Looks like they are seriously trying too woo back those wealthy Indonesians currently flying premium classes of their northern neighbour rivals. https://twitter.com/dtimor/status/336475529131728896/photo/1/large

Almost. New Medan airport slated to open later this year. News in Indonesian from detik.com. Misleading title but nevertheless, it shouldn't happen anyway. http://news.detik.com/read/2013/05/20/202758/2251187/10/pesawat-malaysia-airlines-salah-mendarat-di-bandara-kuala-namu?991101mainnews

Thanks for the info. The Asiana First Suite boasts a 32-inches screen instead of the more common 23-inches. Anyway, looking at the GA video, seems like there is a flush pull handle on each side of the partition. Do you know if these are the two-sided doors version of the BE Oasis Suite?

I think the F is very similar but it's not exactly the same product though they are both products of BE Aerospace. CMIIW.

According to today's report, Garuda's LCC, Citilink Indonesia is ordering 25 ATR72-600s plus 25 options. Lion Air's Wings, then MAS, now Citilink, EADS's setting up of a service base in Singapore seems to bear fruit already. Flights to Johor Bahru, Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu from secondary airports in Indonesia on the plans. Bring on the props!!

BEST AIRLINE IN (EAST) ASIA 2012 01. Asiana Airlines 02. Singapore Airlines 03. Cathay Pacific Airways 04. All Nippon Airways 05. Thai Airways 06. Malaysia Airlines 07. Garuda Indonesia 08. EVA Air 09. Korean Air 10. Hainan Airlines BEST AIRLINE CABIN STAFF 2012 01. Malaysia Airlines 02. Asiana Airlines 03. EVA Air 04. Singapore Airlines 05. All Nippon Airways 06. Thai Airways 07. Qatar Airways 08. Garuda Indonesia 09. Cathay Pacific 10. Hainan AIrlines All Asian Finals here... Asian hospitality rules! BEST FIRST CLASS CABIN 2012 01. Etihad (1 - Best First Class Seats 2012, 1 - Best First Class Catering 2012) 02. Singapore Airlines (2, 4) 03. All Nippon Airways (6, 3) 04. Cathay Pacific Airways (3 -) 05. Emirates (4, 06. Qatar Airways (-, 5) 07. Qantas Airways (-, 6) 08. Lufthansa (5, 7) 09. British Airways (10, -) 10. Malaysia Airlines (-, 10) BEST BUSINESS CLASS CABIN 2012 01. Cathay Pacific Airways (2, -) 02. Qatar Airways (3 - Best Business Class Seats 2012, 3 - Best Business Class Catering 2012) 03. Oman Air (1, -) 04. Singapore Airlines (4, -) 05. Etihad (-, -) 06. Swiss Inernational (-, 1) 07. South African Airways (-, -) 08. Virgin Australia (-, -) 09. Hainan Airlines (-, -) 10. Qantas Airways (-, 5) BEST ECONOMY CLASS CABIN 2012 01. Singapore Airlines (3 - Best Economy Class Seats 2012, 1 - Best Economy Class Catering 2012) 02. Qatar Airways (2, 3) 03. Asiana Airlines (1, 4) 04. Garuda Indonesia (4, 7) 05. All Nippon Airways (10, -) 06. Malaysia Airlines (8, -) 07. Turkish Airlines (-, 2) 08. Thai Airways (6, 5) 09. Cathay Pacific (-, 9) 10. Virgin Australia (-, 10) BEST SIGNATURE DISH 2012 01. Malaysia Airlines 02. - 03. - No other airlines competing in this category!

WORLD AIRLINES AWARDS 2012 TOP 40 AIRLINES OF THE YEAR 01. Qatar Airways (1 in 2011) 02. Asiana Airlines (3) 03. Singapore Airlines (2) 04. Cathay Pacific Airways (4) 05. All Nippon Airways (11) 06. Etihad Airways (6) 07. Turkish Airlines (9) 08. Emirates (10) 09. Thai (5) 10. Malaysia Airlines (12) 11. Garuda Indonesia (19) 12. Virgin Australia (32) 13. EVA Air (16) 14. Lufthansa (15) 15. Qantas Airways ( 16. Korean AIr (24) 17. Air New Zealand (7) 18. Swiss International (13) 19. Air Canada (21) 20. Hainan Airlines (23) 21. Dragonair (18) 22. Air Asia (20) 23. Oman Air (28) 24. Aegean Airlines (22) 25. South African Airways (42) 26. Virgin America (33) 27. Bangkok Airways (27) 28. British Airways (44) 29. China Southern Airlines (29) 30. Jetstar Airways (30) 31. Finnair (40) 32. TAM Airlines (25) 33. China Airlines (39) 34. KLM (46) 35. Japan Airlines (49) 36. SilkAir (26) 37. China Airlines (36) 38. LAN Airlines (34) 39. Austrian Airlines (17) 40. Air Asia X (41) 8 Airlines in the Top 40 are based in ASEAN, that's a 20%!

At the rate QF made the news lately, I feel a lot safer on GA than on that 'supposedly safe' Australian airline though...

He did talk about numbers but I don't think he'll name a country to compare though. Fact wise, Indonesia's GDP is around USD 1.1 trillion (PPP) and USD 850 billion (nominal), which is roughly 3 or 4 times that of Malaysia's. The number shrinks though, when divided by 235 million living there, compare to Malaysia's 28 million. As a comparison, China's GDP is USD 11 trillion (PPP) and USD 7.3 trillion (nominal), which is about USD5000 per person, half of Malaysia's GDP per person (nominal). I just think they're doing better with their State Owned Enterprises (SOE)s than Malaysia in the last few years. The minister's even allowed giant SOEs to form their own 'dream team' to manage their operations with a lot less government intervention than ever before. In the past, Bapak Emirsyah agreed to become CEO only after the then minister put in a clause which said that the government shall have little/no say in the airline's business plan. Guess now that it has become a PLC, they have all the chance to do even better. Kudos Mr.ES !

They almost always post losses in Q1, and are traditionally making up for the losses at the 3rd and 4th quarter. Haven't see them visibly cutting cost though, magazine getting thicker, new planes keep coming, blanket wide, thick and warm, etc. Hopefully not. I heard the only reason why they still have not begun their internet-on-seat and use-your-phone on board service is the indonesian government who always seem to take forever to issue their permit. The airline and the aircrafts are ready for the technology. Was listening to a few interviews with their CEO, they're never going to cut fares to almost zero as that very factor is considered one of their biggest mistake of the past. They will be playing in their league and try to market itself as a full-service carrier. I think that's the key, all about attitude and seriousness. I really think it's only good for MH to start looking at VN and GA as serious competitors. SQ, TG or CX are way too far ahead, while AK is playing a different league and should not be considered direct competitor. Less slogans more actions please.

I've been on MH old and new A330s and 777s, and just like me, I think many other will agree to say that as of today, they do not beat GA on products and services. After those experiences on them, honestly, I'd rather be splashing an extra USD20s for a much better product to China on GA or an extra USD50s to be on SQ. Let's not talk about the 737s. Sadly I have to say that even the B734s operated by GA's LCC Citilink beats MH's B734 hands down in terms of comfort. I'd gladly choose any AK/QZ's on short hops than paying more for the products I'll get on an MH short-hop. So let's not always talk about TG, SQ or CX as the 'same-level' competitors. Others are silently but surely making their leaps too. I would say, if GA keeps its level of consistency, and work harder to improve their marketing, website content and booking system, many will be left wondering which is the actual 5-starred carrier. I have to agree with those to say they are going to be the Oman Air of Southeast Asian region. That said, they are not definitely there yet, but with the continuous aggressive upgrading, it's a just matter of time. Really sorry for MH, there is definitely no harm to admit that serious catching up needs to be done. Real Soon Mr.Azmil.