The new partnership will enable passengers of Garuda Indonesia a smooth transit in Bangkok to connect to Thailand's top holiday destinations as well as the region's favourites which include: Samui, Lampang, Phuket, Udon Thani, Krabi, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phnom Penh, Luang Prabang and Dhaka.
BANGKOK – (ACN Newswire) – Bangkok Airways (PG) and Garuda Indonesia (GA) recently announced the commencement of their two-way codeshare agreement on Bangkok Airways’ selected flights in Thailand. The codeshare routes are already open for sale and the operation will be effective from 15 December 2014 onwards.
The new partnership will enable passengers of Garuda Indonesia a smooth transit in Bangkok to connect to Thailand’s top holiday destinations as well as the region’s favourites which include: Samui, Lampang, Phuket, Udon Thani, Krabi, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phnom Penh, Luang Prabang and Dhaka. Whereas, Bangkok Airways passengers will be able to make reservation on Garuda Indonesia’s network which include: Bangkok – Jakarta, Singapore – Jakarta, Jakarta – Denpasar Bali, Jakarta – Yogyakarta, Jakarta – Semarang, Jakarta – Surabaya and Jakarta – Ujung Pandang.
Mr. Peter Wiesner, Bangkok Airways’ Senior Vice president – Network Management commented, “The codeshare agreement allows the passengers to benefit from the networks of both airlines to travel between Thailand and Indonesia with ideal connectivity and increase travel flexibility. Besides, codeshare flights via Bangkok and Jakarta will be able to reach domestic and International points of each country.”
Garuda Indonesia EVP Sales and Marketing Erik Meijer also commented, “We are pleased to announce this partnership with Bangkok Airways which extends our network even further within the Southeast Asia. Thailand is an important market for Indonesia and through this partnership we can offer more travel options for the increasing number of passengers travelling between the two countries. At the same time, the agreement is expected to boost trade and tourism activities by making Indonesia much more accessible for Thai visitors.”
This partnership is believed to offer a unique advantage for Garuda Indonesia’s passengers who will enjoy Bangkok Airways’ unparalleled services including check-through service, lounge access, in-flight meal.
Garuda Indonesia Receives Skytrax Highest 5-Star Rating
Garuda Indonesia has also been named the newest member of the exclusive group of 5-Star Airlines by Skytrax, the world’s leading airline and airport review specialists. The exclusive, top-tier 5-star rating is only awarded to airlines achieving the highest quality performance, and importantly, this focuses on the airline’s ability to deliver this on a consistent basis. Garuda Indonesia today becomes the seventh airlines earned the prestigious award, joining Asiana Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Hainan Airlines, All Nippon Airways, Qatar Airways, and Singapore Airlines.
President and CEO of Garuda Indonesia Emirsyah Satar commented that being named a 5-star airline by Skytrax marks another milestone as a firm recognition of the ongoing transformation, which the airline’s has continued to make over the recent years, not only in terms of services, but also throughout all aspects of the company.
“It is certainly an honor for all of us at Garuda Indonesia, and the achievement becomes even more meaningful as we are now reaching towards the completion of our “Quantum Leap” journey. For the past years, we have been striving persistently to provide a world-class travelling experience for our passengers and I believe that this accomplishment will serve as further inspiration for us to remain committed and improve even better. Furthermore, we take great pride in establishing our home country more firmly on the international stage by receiving this prestigious recognition,” he continued.
Edward Plaisted, CEO of Skytrax said, “This is recognition of the major turnaround in quality standards at Garuda Indonesia, reflecting the hard work by the airline in recent years, and we delighted to confirm that they are now meeting the 5-Star Airline. This rating is based on an all-round assessment of the product and service, onboard and at the airport. We place a lot of importance on the fact that the majority of customers travel in Economy and it is the quality and consistency of those standards that contribute greatly to Garuda securing 5-Stars. Consistency of an airline’s product and service is a major part of the 5-Star rating, with Garuda’s long haul fleet now offering Business Class flat-bed seating and 32-34 inch seat pitch in Economy Class. Customers can also experience the new First and Business Class 5-Star service concept rolled out across the Boeing 777-300ER fleet.”
This 5-Star Airline rating also takes account of planned airport and service changes in 2015, when Garuda will transfer to the new Terminal 3 at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, it’s home base hub. This will provide a new home for Garuda Indonesia and SkyTeam member airlines, improving the travel experience through enhanced transfers and airport service, together with improved and expanded premium passenger facilities.
A 5-star airline rating represents “ultimate” quality recognition and approval, which is only awarded to airlines that achieve an exceptional front-line quality performance. The 5-star airline rating recognizes airlines at the forefront of product innovation, that sets quality benchmarks and trends that are often followed by other carriers. The airline rating systems assess the standard of an airline’s product and service delivery quality, using more than 800 assessment categories, applied across both the onboard and airport environments.
On the ground, airline website/online operations, ticketing, check-in, security, lounges, boarding, departures, transfer, arrivals, and branding are all assessed, with prime importance given to all “touch points” involved in final service delivery to the customer. Onboard assessment includes a detailed assessment across all areas of onboard product, staff service techniques and efficiency, and associated aspects of staff service.
As Garuda Indonesia strives to continue its transformation program, the airline’s performance is increasingly being recognized at international level. Garuda Indonesia proceeded to receive a new coveted accolade as airline with “The World’s Best Cabin Crew 2014” from Skytrax at the Farnborough International Airshow 2014.
Previously, Garuda Indonesia was also awarded “The World’s Best Economy Class” in 2013, “The World’s Best Regional Airline” in 2012, and “The World’s Most Improved Airline” in 2010, also by Skytrax. Moreover, during the “Passenger Choice Award 2013” held in September 2013 in Anaheim, California, USA, and organized by “Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX)”, Garuda Indonesia was chosen as the “Best in Region: Asia and Australasia”.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
