Asia Inc

 

 

 

But, 45-year-old Rusdi will not agree with calling Lion a budget carrier. He would prefer it to be called a “hybrid carrier”. Lion now offers business class seats, as well as assigned seating — services deemed as frills by the LCC crowd. 

In this year’s Singapore Airshow held in February, PT Lion Mentari Airlines, as the company is formally known, placed an order for 56 Boeing 737-900ER jetliners worth $4.4 billion at list prices. This brings the company’s total order of Boeing aircraft to 178 units. The company has therefore earned itself a place in aviation history on two points: the volume of orders and being the launch customer of the 737-900ER.

This model can carry up to 213 passengers in an all economy class configuration, and has an extended range to reach just about any regular destination within Asia. The airline now operates 46 aircraft, including 10 of the spanking new Boeing 737-900ERs, and this number is set to grow rapidly. Between now and 2010, Lion will take delivery of one aircraft per month, and from 2011 onwards, the delivery schedule will be speeded up to two or three planes monthly. 

The airline has a staff of 5,000 and operates 215 daily flights, connecting Indonesian businessmen, government officials and other travellers to 32 destinations all over the vast archipelago, with average load factor hitting 90%. International routes have also been launched, including Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Ho Chi Minh City, where an average of 65% of the seats are sold. Flights to Down Under are also scheduled by year-end.