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Singapore Airlines and Garuda Indonesia want to deepen their existing relations through a deeper commercial partnership. They want to enter a joint venture arrangement to increase passenger capacity between Singapore and Indonesia, specifically on routes to Jakarta, Denpasar, and Surabaya, the two airlines announced on May 29. Singapore Airlines and Garuda to deepen partnership.
The arrangement is subject to regulatory approval, but the two airlines see many opportunities to coordinate schedules and offer customers more travel options between Singapore and Indonesia. The partnership could also include joint fares and the alignment of their corporate programs, but that will be explored later.
The two carriers have closely worked together for over a decade. In 2010, they launched a codeshare arrangement between Singapore and Denpasar, followed in 2014 by the codeshare to Surabaya and Singapore Airlines’ previous regional subsidiary SilkAir. A codeshare between Singapore and Jakarta was added in 2019.
In November 2021, SIA and Garuda signed a Memorandum of Understanding to enter a wide-ranging commercial partnership that the including alignment of their frequent flyer/loyalty programs, marketing and tourism activities, cargo, and maintenance, repair, and overhaul.
The two airlines reactivated their codeshare on flights between Singapore and Jakarta, Bali, and Surabaya on October 1, 2021, which had been postponed during the pandemic. From January 2022, the codeshare was also extended to include Garuda’s callsign on SIA’s international services to London, Mumbai, and Johannesburg. The joint venture announced today is an extension of this partnership.
A win-win arrangement
Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong said in a media statement: “This joint venture will be a win-win arrangement that elevates the long-standing partnership between Garuda Indonesia and Singapore Airlines. It reflects our firm commitment to grow the aviation markets in Indonesia and Singapore, facilitating a greater level of business and people connections, and promoting both countries as regional tourism destinations. Our customers will also enjoy even more benefits, including an improved level of network connectivity, enhanced travel convenience, and additional fare options.”
His Garuda colleague Irfan Setiaputra said: “With the existence of more than a decade of collaboration between these two national flag carriers, this joint venture agreement, as a further milestone of the partnership expansion initiative, will certainly strengthen the commitment between the two carriers simultaneously, delivering a seamless and valuable flying experience to both our customers across the globe.”
Setiaputra also said that the partnership will allow Garuda to optimize its network, which the carrier cut back during the Covid crisis. He hopes that the partnership will result in more tourist streams between Indonesia and Singapore from tourists that travel across Southeast Asia.
Garuda also has a partnership with Emirates
In November 2021, Garuda signed an MoU with Emirates on a codeshare partnership for Garuda customers on Emirates flights to North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. It also includes codeshare for Emirates customers on eight routes from Jakarta and Denpasar.
Garuda reported a $-110 million net loss in Q1 this year compared to $-224.1 million in the same period of 2022. Revenues were $603 million, up from $350 million. The airline has outstanding orders for nine Airbus A330-900s for delivery from 2026 through 2031, but Garuda has the right to convert them into A350s and A350Fs. It also has orders for four A330-800s for delivery between 2027 and 2030 but is entitled to cancel them. The carrier also has outstanding orders for 49 Boeing MAX 8s but postponed deliveries in 2021 after the two fatal accidents of the aircraft. Further deliveries are still pending.
As reported earlier in May, Singapore Airlines announced a record profit for FY2022-2023.
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