Garuda's haj armada shrinks to six planes<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): National flag carrier Garuda Indonesia has said
\nit will deploy a fleet of only six planes to transport 42,500
\nIndonesian haj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia starting Feb. 24, down
\nfrom the 26 aircraft operated for last year's haj season.<\/p>\n
Garuda spokesman Pudjobroto told The Jakarta Post on Thursday
\nthe ailing airline would operate three Boeing B747-200s and three
\nBoeing B767s to transport 42,500 pilgrims out of the 71,300 total
\nduring the haj season, which begins on Feb. 20 and ends on March
\n28.<\/p>\n
\"We will have a smaller fleet this year,\" Pudjobroto said in
\nhis office here.<\/p>\n
Saudi Airlines will transport the remaining 28,800 pilgrims to
\nMecca, he said.<\/p>\n
It will be the first time for Saudi Airlines to serve
\nIndonesian pilgrims. In the past although Saudi Airlines was
\nentitled to serve the Indonesia-Saudi Arabia route, Garuda
\nremained the sole carrier of Indonesian pilgrims to Mecca, raking
\nin significant profits during the season.<\/p>\n
The three B747-200s are Garuda's own aircraft, which would be
\nsold by the airline after the haj season, while the B767 aircraft
\nwould be chartered for the pilgrimage month only.<\/p>\n
The sharp increase in airfares following the sharp drop in the
\nrupiah against the U.S. dollar has discouraged many Moslems from
\nmaking their haj pilgrimage this year.<\/p>\n
The rupiah has lost nearly 75 percent of its value against the
\nAmerican greenback since the monetary crisis hit the country in
\nJuly, 1997, causing more than a doubling in most dollar-based
\nprices.<\/p>\n
Last year Garuda deployed 26 jets to transport the 202,300
\npilgrims. Nine of the aircraft were owned by the airline, and the
\nremaining 17 were chartered for pilgrimage purposes.<\/p>\n
Garuda is currently trimming its fleets as part of a major
\noperating and financial overhaul.<\/p>\n
It operates 40 aircraft and owns an additional five B747-200s
\nand eight Airbus 334s, all of which are currently up for sale.<\/p>\n
Pudjo said Garuda would carry the pilgrims from Solo (Central
\nJava) on Feb. 24, Ujungpandang (South Sulawesi) on Feb. 25,
\nBalikpapan (East Kalimantan) and Jakarta on Feb. 28 with the last
\ngroup flying from Medan (North Sumatra) on March 1.<\/p>\n
The pilgrims from Ujungpandang and Solo will be carried on the
\nB-767s, which can seat 344 people. The remaining pilgrims will
\nfly by the 480-seater B747-200s, he said. (das)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/garudas-haj-armada-shrinks-to-six-planes-1447893297",
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