Prabowo Claims to Have Saved Garuda Indonesia, Targets Profit by 2027
President Prabowo Subianto has highlighted the rescue of state-owned airline PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk. (GIAA), stating that the carrier has moved from near bankruptcy to a healthier position and is now targeted to record a profit in 2027.
“Garuda Indonesia, which was almost declared bankrupt, whose dozens of aircraft were grounded and could not be repaired, we have now succeeded in reactivating the grounded aircraft,” he said in his speech at the Annual Session of the MPR and the Joint Session of the DPR-DPD RI on Friday (14/8/2026).
Prabowo revealed that as of June 2026, the total number of reactivated aircraft had increased by 20, bringing the fleet to 140 aircraft. “Garuda Indonesia, which had been loss-making for years, now has hope of returning to profit,” he added.
According to him, had there been no conflict between countries in the Middle East, the airline would already have posted a profit. He expressed hope that the state-owned carrier would record a profit in 2027.
He reminded that in the financial reporting of state-owned enterprises, there must be no manipulation of figures or false reports. “We must have correct figures, accurate figures, even if they are sometimes bitter,” he said.
For information, PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk. (GIAA) recorded a loss for the period attributable to owners of the parent entity of US$46.4 million in the first quarter of 2026. This loss narrowed from US$76.4 million in March 2025.
Citing its financial report submitted through the Indonesia Stock Exchange (BEI) disclosure system, GIAA’s total operating revenue as of March 2026 stood at US$762.3 million, up 5.3% from US$723.5 million in March 2025.
Operating revenue consisted of scheduled flights, which rose from US$603.6 million to US$648.1 million, and non-scheduled flights, which fell to US$24.9 million from US$37.9 million. Meanwhile, other revenue rose from US$81.9 million to US$89.2 million.
Furthermore, GIAA’s total operating expenses as of March 2026 decreased slightly from US$718.3 million to US$713.2 million. Operating expenses consisted of flight operating expenses, which fell slightly to US$350.2 million; maintenance and repair expenses, which rose slightly to US$159.1 million; airport charges, which rose slightly to US$57.8 million; and passenger service expenses, which rose slightly to US$49.9 million.
In addition, general and administrative expenses fell to US$42.01 million. Ticket, sales and promotion expenses rose slightly to US$45.6 million; hotel operating expenses rose slightly to US$4.85 million; transportation operating expenses rose slightly to US$2.62 million; and network operating expenses fell slightly to US$0.96 million.
GIAA was also burdened by other operating expenses, which rose slightly as of March 2026 from US$93.9 million to US$96.8 million. This was due to a net foreign exchange loss of US$1.3 million. However, its finance income rose from US$3.3 million to US$9.1 million.
Furthermore, share of profit of associates fell to US$0.61 million, finance costs fell to US$104 million, and net other expenses stood at US$1.2 million.
After deducting loss before income tax and income tax benefit, GIAA’s loss for the period in the first quarter of this year narrowed from US$75.9 million to US$41.6 million.
GIAA’s total liabilities and equity as of March 2026 rose to US$7.5 billion from US$7.4 billion in December 2025.