Prabowo Requests Garuda Joint Venture with Saudi Arabian Airlines

Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto is pushing for a major strategic step in Indonesia’s Hajj services with plans to build a dedicated terminal for Indonesian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.

The project has reportedly secured in-principle approval from Saudi Kingdom authorities and is now entering the accelerated execution phase.

Prabowo revealed this during a briefing at the Government Working Meeting (Raker) at the Presidential Palace Complex in Central Jakarta on Wednesday, 8 April 2026.

Prabowo emphasised that the dedicated terminal is intended to shorten the processing time for the arrival and departure of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims.

“I have already proposed it and it has been approved in principle. I have requested permission from the Saudi kingdom for Indonesia to have a dedicated Hajj terminal so that entry and exit can be faster,” he explained.

To realise the project, Prabowo directly instructed the President Director of Garuda Indonesia and the CEO of Danantara to immediately explore cooperation with the Saudi airline, Saudi Arabian Airlines.

“I request approaching Saudi Air to create a joint venture; I have already instructed it,” he continued.

Prabowo assessed that this cooperation scheme is not only about services but also about the efficiency of Hajj flight operations, which have so far been deemed suboptimal. He highlighted the flight patterns that disadvantage both parties.

“This is not economical; it doesn’t make sense. Saudi Arabia does the same; it returns our Hajj pilgrims to Indonesia with empty flights,” said Prabowo.

Therefore, the President proposed forming a joint business entity between Garuda and Saudi Air to make flight operations more efficient and mutually beneficial.

In addition to increasing the aircraft load factor, this cooperation is believed to directly impact ticket price reductions and service acceleration.

Besides emphasising the urgency of the project, Prabowo also showed his impatience with the progress deemed slow, even though instructions were given about two months ago.

“Has it been worked on? I instructed it about two months ago. Yes, this government must work quickly. Yes, the director of Garuda should meet me,” stated Prabowo.