INDONESIA’s national carrier has re-launched daily flights between Medan and Singapore yesterday, signalling plans for the airline to embark on a new expansion trajectory.
Garuda’s service is being operated by a Boeing 738 with a two-class cabin configuration – business and economy. Flights depart from Kualanamu International Airport at 13.30 and arrive at Changi Airport at 16.00, while the service from Singapore departs at 11.15 and lands in Medan at 11.45.
The timing of the service means that travellers from Medan will not be able to connect with Garuda’s Singapore-London or Singapore-Amsterdam routes.
According to a Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) report, the Medan-Singapore schedule seems to indicate that Garuda is not serious about developing Singapore as a hub, which was its strategy a few years ago.
Instead, “Garuda will likely remove the Singapore stop for Amsterdam and London once a runway improvement project at Jakarta is completed,” reasoned CAPA, as the upgrading works will then allow the flag carrier to offer direct flights from Soekarno-Hatta Airport to Europe.
“Offering nonstops on all its European flights in both directions is sensible as it will significantly improve Garuda’s product from its home market of Indonesia and from Australia,” stated the report.
This is in line with what Garuda has been doing the past one year to increase its European operations. From only five weekly flights to Europe in May 2015, it now has 11 weekly flights there, accounting for roughly 10 per cent of Garuda’s international available seat kilometres
