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Publicly listed charter airline PT Indonesia Air Transport
(IATA) is seeking to team up with newcomer Eagle Air to provide flights
to remote areas across the country, a company executive says.
IATA newly appointed president director Hartono Tanoesoedibjo said
Monday the cooperation was part of IATA's expansion efforts to provide
flights in areas not currently served by regular airlines.
"In the future, we will not only serve charter flights. We will expand
our business to provide regular flights, as well, by becoming feeders
to regular flights that will connect main cities with remote areas," he
said.
Eagle Air, which just recently obtained an operation permit from the
ministry of transportation, would provide regular flights to big cities
while IATA would provide smaller airplanes to transport Eagle Air
passengers to remote cities, said Hartono.
The airlines will initially serve areas mostly in eastern Indonesia,
including Bali, Lombok, Sulawesi and Kalimantan.
Hartono said the airlines planned to start the operation in the first
quarter of this year.
"We are still calculating the total investment. We may purchase or
lease between 20 and 25 aircraft for the new business," said Hartono,
adding that IATA might also consider adding an international route from
Sumatra to Malaysia.
The new business is expected to increase IATA's revenue by up to Rp 240
billion (US$25.5 million) this year, or about 10 percent higher that
last year's revenue of Rp 219 billion.
The company recorded a net profit of Rp 4.4 billion last year.
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