BATAVIA Air has suspended several routes, cut frequencies and put some aircraft aside for maintenance to keep business going, following the collapse of acquisition talks with AirAsia and its Indonesian partner Fersindo Nusaperkasa (TTG Asia e-Daily, October 15, 2012).
The airline’s commercial director Sukirno Sukarna told the media in Jakarta earlier this week that the deal’s cancellation meant that the company would not get the fresh cash it needed to rejuvenate its fleet, but it was not the end of the world for Batavia Air.
“We will continue our plan to rejuvenate our aircraft, but it will be slower than we had hoped for earlier,” he said.
He added that the airline had suspended its Jakarta-Medan, Jakarta-Gorontalo and Bandung-Singapore services to improve efficiency and facilitate aircraft maintenance during the low season. Batavia Air has 33 aircraft and is operating 20 at the moment.
“We have suspended the routes during the low season and will restart services during the peak season, starting end of November,” he said.
