Two new start-ups launch, but Indonesia wants to see more

Two new airlines have been launched in Indonesia, the first new scheduled carriers to start operating in the archipelago in more than a decade.

Awair International, also known as Air Wagon International, began services on 22 June. Two Airbus A310s have been leased from Singapore-based RegionAir and Awair says it is licensed to operate on 27 domestic routes and 28 international routes. International flights are planned from later this year.

Lion Airlines was the second start-up to begin scheduled services. A Boeing 737-200 was used for the launch and president director Rusdi Kilana says a second was to have been added by the end of July, with more services to follow.

Kilana says the carrier's first international flights are expected to be between Palembang and Singapore. Both 737s are being wet-leased from US-based International Aircraft Leasing and more are to be added later this year.

The airline's licence allows for scheduled services on 48 domestic routes as well as an unspecified number of international routes, Kilana adds. Just five routes are to be operated by the end of this year, however.

The addition of Awair and Lion Airlines to the local market lifts to seven the number of scheduled operators in Indonesia. The others are state-owned Garuda Indonesia and Merpati Nusantara, and private carriers Bouraq, DAS and Mandala.

The Indonesian Government has been encouraging new start-ups and wants some charter operators to switch to scheduled services to increase competition. At least five more scheduled carriers hope to start services this year.

Source: Airline Business