Missing Flying with Garuda

Kompas/Bahana Patria Gupta

Health workers wait to perform rapid tests on Indonesian workers returning from Malaysia at the arrival hall of Juanda International Airport in Sidoarjo, East Java, on Wednesday (15/4/2020). One hundred and seventy-two Malaysia Airlines passengers and 78 Citilink passengers were tested. Passengers who tested negative were taken home by bus. The Citilink passengers have been quarantined for 14 days in Medan, North Sumatra.

Indra Raharja (40) was sitting in a departure lounge at Juanda Airport Surabaya, East Java, Monday (29/11/2021). While waiting for a flight to Hasanuddin Airport, South Sulawesi, he was busy with his smartphone.

Since mid-2021, the Sidoarjo resident has been going back and forth from Surabaya to Makassar. His office has assigned him to oversee a hospital construction project in the city.

As a member of the Garuda Miles loyalty program, he actually wanted to fly with his favorite airline, Garuda Indonesia. However, because of certain problems, it was difficult to realize his wish. He chose instead to fly with Citilink. “The majority of Garuda flights to Makassar are transit flights. I've never taken a direct flight from Surabaya," said Indra, who bought the ticket through an online ticketing platform.

There are three scheduled Garuda flights available from Surabaya to Makassar, namely at 6 a.m., 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. However, all are transit flights so the journey takes more than 11 hours. Meanwhile, taking a direct flight through another airline can take only one and a half hours.

The price of Garuda’s ticket for the same flight is more than Rp 3 million per passenger.

In addition to the longer travel time, Garuda tickets are much more expensive, about three times the price of other airline tickets. The average price of an economy class ticket from Surabaya to Makassar is between Rp 800,000 and Rp 1 million per passenger. The price of Garuda’s ticket for the same flight is more than Rp 3 million per passenger.

“Economy class tickets are getting more unaffordable, while promotional tickets are getting rare. In fact, I have not received a single discount offer from Garuda during the last six months," said Indra.

Hard to match

He is missing flying with Garuda. For him, the convenience of flying with Garuda cannot be matched by other airlines, especially for economy class.

Garuda Indonesia's services so far have lured many loyal customers. One of them is entrepreneur Layasi Salvator Karokaro (58). He usually flies with Garuda Indonesia from Surabaya, Jakarta or Medan every week.

"The arrival time is very predictable, after the departure, we can prepare several meetings," he said.

Route reduction

Unfortunately, the customer loyalty has not been matched with excellent service. Moreover, Garuda Indonesia is now suffering from a financial crisis. Garuda will reduce its services to only 140 routes by 2022.

Kompas

Didie SW

Adri Istanbul Gayo Lingga (52), a property entrepreneur, regrets Garuda’s plan. "It's even more difficult now to adjust the schedule and to cope with the soaring ticket prices. We can no longer take business class because it is so expensive. The Surabaya-Jakarta ticket costs Rp 5,699,500 now. The previous price was Rp 3 million,” said Adri, who holds a GFF Platinum member card. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Adri flew 120 times a year.

During the pandemic, other airlines have also reduced the number of flight routes.

Yuliana Triwijayanti (40) was affected by the flight reduction. On Tuesday (30/11) at 1 p.m., she was informed that her father had been admitted to Panti Rapih Hospital in Yogyakarta but she was unable to fly immediately to the city due to a lack of flights. Not only Garuda, but other airlines also had a limited number of flights.

"When I checked, the Soekarno-Hatta flight to YIA (Yogyakarta International Airport) would take four hours. It’s so long It turned out it was a transit flight," said Ana, who has an office in Cawang, Jakarta.

Instead of taking a transit flight, Ana chose to take the Bima train. Suddenly after arriving at Tugu Station after midnight, Ana went straight to Panti Rapih Hospital. "At first I was not allowed to enter the hospital room, but I was later allowed to enter for two minutes," said Ana.

Samuel, who studies at Sriwijaya University, Palembang, must first transit in Jakarta to fly from Medan to Palembang.

Samuel Lubis (20), a resident of North Tapanuli regency, was also affected by the closure of the Medan-Palembang direct flight. Samuel, who studies at Sriwijaya University, Palembang, must first transit in Jakarta to fly from Medan to Palembang.

KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI

Boeing 737-800 aircraft belonging to Garuda Indonesia and Batik Air are at Rendani Airport, Manokwari, West Papua, Thursday (22/4/2021).

"Because I have to transit, the fare I have to pay doubled," Samuel said on Saturday (11/12). Usually, the Medan to Palembang flight cost only between Rp 700,000 and Rp 900,000. Now, the ticket price ranges between Rp 1.4 million and Rp 1.7 million.

The aviation industry is still in a difficult situation. However, many hopes are pinned on the flap of Garuda's wings. The public hopes that Garuda Indonesia can fly even higher to serve passengers in the archipelago. Hopefully, some day.

(This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi)