Garuda to fly Jakarta-Osaka route

OSAKA, Jepang: PT Garuda Indonesia Tbk, Indonesian flag carrier, is now preparing a plan to fly a direct route of Jakarta-Osaka, following high demand for this route.General Manager of Garuda Indonesia Osaka Asa Perkasa confirmed to have accepted a proposal for opening a flight service from Osaka government due to high interest of local community, especially business community."Officially, Governor and Mayor of Osaka will discuss the proposal with the board of directors of Garuda Indonesia in their official visit to Indonesia in June and July," he said in a meeting with Indonesian journalists who participated in family trip to Consul General of Indonesia and Garuda Indonesia in Osaka, Jepang, yesterday.According to him, Osaka Governor Toru Hashimoto and Osaka Mayor Kunio Hiramatsu plan a working visit to Jakarta and Surabaya on 14 to 18 June 2011 and the Osaka Mayor Kunio Hiramatsu will visit Jakarta on 5-7 July 2011.So far, Garuda Indonesia has flown three cities in Japan, namely Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka.To go to Osaka, as Asa explained, the airlines company serves daily flight of Jakarta-Denpasar-Osaka.For direct flights of Jakarta-Tokyo and Denpasar-Nagoya, Garuda provides single flight per day, while Nagoya-Denpasar is available for three times a week.Asa is optimistic direct flight of Jakarta-Osaka will be very attractive for businessman in Osaka regarding the high potential market for the prospect of economic cooperation for both cities.He said the flight service of Jakarta-Denpasar-Osaka has an average load factor of above 70%."Even in peak season, the load factor can reach above 90%. This follows the suspension of JALs air service from Denpasar. "Besides visiting the capital city of Jakarta and Surabaya for business purposes, Bali remains the most favorite destination for tourists from Osaka."We will try to develop alternative tour packages covering other destinations including Yogyakarrta, Solo and surrounding areas," he said. (T03/NOM)