Do we need another low-cost carrier in Indonesia? If it offers flights from Jakarta to Bali for under IDR500K, the answer is probably a super resounding yes.
Indonesia’s aviation industry is set to welcome a new player in the game in the shape of Super Air Jet, a low-cost carrier that, according to its executives, is aimed at millennials (which probably means dirt cheap fares for the financially limited yet travel hungry generation).
Yesterday, the airline announced that it secured an Air Operator Certificate (AOC) on Friday, meaning its aircrafts have fulfilled technical and safety regulations in Indonesia.
While Super Air Jet requires several more certifications from regulators before it could take off, the airline has already placed airfares for its exclusively domestic routes on its website. A one-way fare from Jakarta to Bali, for example, starts at IDR426K, which, after taxes, should put it in the range of fares offered by established low-cost carriers such as Indonesia’s Lion Air and Malaysia’s AirAsia.
The lowest fare from Jakarta is a one-way flight to Palembang (IDR252K), while Jakarta to Medan Kualanamu was advertised at IDR536K.
No bookings can be made at the time of writing, and the airline has not given an exact launch date.
Super Air Jet has reported links to Lion Air, with shares known to be owned by Davin Kirana, the son of Lion Air Group founder Rusdi Kirana, as well as other Lion Air executives.
Lion Air Group is the largest privately held airline group in Indonesia, carving up 51 percent of the domestic aviation market share as of 2017. Its dominance may yet continue in the years ahead with flag carrier Garuda Indonesia mired deep in debt and is clinging on to survive the pandemic.
USD1=IDR14,478
