{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1534182,
        "msgid": "merpati-fails-to-break-even-this-year-1447893297",
        "date": "1997-10-24 00:00:00",
        "title": "Merpati fails to break even this year",
        "author": null,
        "source": "JP",
        "tags": null,
        "topic": null,
        "summary": "Merpati fails to break even this year JAKARTA (JP): State-owned air carrier Merpati Nusantara Airlines, which has suffered from long-term financial troubles, will not breakeven this year following the sharp depreciation of the rupiah, the company's president said. Budiarto Subroto said the local aviation industry was facing a tough situation as most of the costs and expenditures were in U.S. dollars, while the airfares would only be raised later this year.",
        "content": "<p>Merpati fails to break even this year<\/p>\n<p>JAKARTA (JP): State-owned air carrier Merpati Nusantara<br>\nAirlines, which has suffered from long-term financial troubles,<br>\nwill not breakeven this year following the sharp depreciation of<br>\nthe rupiah, the company's president said.<\/p>\n<p>Budiarto Subroto said the local aviation industry was facing a<br>\ntough situation as most of the costs and expenditures were in<br>\nU.S. dollars, while the airfares would only be raised later this<br>\nyear.<\/p>\n<p>\"It's impossible to breakeven this year,\" he said here<br>\nyesterday after awarding a number of travel agencies associated<br>\nwith Merpati.<\/p>\n<p>Merpati was previously set to breakeven this year after the<br>\ngovernment separated last April the airline from its parent<br>\ncompany the national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia.<\/p>\n<p>Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto had promised<br>\nthe House of Representatives that Merpati would start to post<br>\nprofit in 1998.<\/p>\n<p>Merpati posted a Rp 40.86 billion (US$11.3 million) loss in<br>\nthe first half of this year.<\/p>\n<p>The airlines' losses dropped slightly to Rp 130 billion in<br>\n1996 from Rp 133 billion in 1995. The company is also burdened<br>\nwith Rp 600 billion in debts which it expects to be converted<br>\ninto new government equity shares.<\/p>\n<p>The company, assigned to serve remote areas in the country<br>\nwith unprofitable routes and fewer passengers, currently operates<br>\n90 aircraft including B-737-200s, F-28s, F-27s, ATPs, Casa-212s<br>\nand Twin Otters.<\/p>\n<p>Most of Merpati's fleet are aging aircraft, thereby making the<br>\nairlines inefficient due to high maintenance costs.<\/p>\n<p>Merpati's marketing director, Toto Nursatyo, said yesterday<br>\nthe airline had to improve its performance by reducing the costs<br>\nwithin the next six-month period and flying new promising routes.<\/p>\n<p>\"We plan to operate three new regional routes this year,\" he<br>\nsaid.<\/p>\n<p>The new services will include the Jakarta-Denpasar-Perth route<br>\nthree times a week with Airbus A-310, the Denpasar-Broome route<br>\ntwice a week with Fokker F-28 and the Denpasar-Taipei three times<br>\na week with A-310 aircraft.<\/p>\n<p>Merpati currently flies to Darwin, Melbourne and Port Hedland<br>\nin Australia, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.<\/p>\n<p>\"The market in Australia is promising. Based on our study,<br>\nflights from Perth to Indonesia never see any low season,\"<br>\nNursatyo said.<\/p>\n<p>He added that the government had also approved Merpati's plans<br>\nto fly to Hong Kong and Jeddah. (icn)<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/merpati-fails-to-break-even-this-year-1447893297",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}