JAKARTA, Dec 12, 2014 - (ANTARA) - Garuda Indonesia - the airline of Indonesia - has been named the newest member of the exclusive group of 5-Star Airlines by Skytrax, the world's leading airline and airport review specialists (www.airlinequality.com). 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".
About PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk.
Presenting a new level of service excellence in air travel, Garuda Indonesia, the national airline of Indonesia, seamlessly connects more than 70 destinations worldwide to not only one of the largest economies in Southeast Asia, but also an array of exotic locations in the beautiful archipelago of Indonesia all at once. With close to 600 daily flights and a fleet of around 160 aircraft (the average age of which is less than five years old), Garuda Indonesia proudly serves its passengers with the award-winning "Garuda Indonesia Experience" service, which highlights Indonesia's warm hospitality and rich diverse culture.
The airline continuously strives, through its ongoing transformation program, to provide better and more convenient services with one of the youngest fleets in the sky, which should grow to around 194 aircraft by 2015. The progress of Garuda Indonesia's transformation program can be seen from achieving a Skytrax airline ranking as the 7th best airline in the world in the 2014, as well as winning the prestigious "The World's Best Cabin Crew" award in 2014 and "The World's Best Economy Class" award in 2013, also from Skytrax. Garuda Indonesia is a member of SkyTeam, the global airline alliance with 20 members, providing access to an extensive global network with over 15,700 daily flights to 1,052 destinations in 177 countries.
For further information, please log on to www.garuda-indonesia.com, follow @IndonesiaGaruda on Twitter, like our Facebook page at PT.GarudaIndonesia, or subscribe to youtube.com/GarudaIndonesia1949.
Contact:
Garuda Indonesia
Pujobroto,
VP Corporate Communications
DID: +62 21 2560 1069
Email: corpcomm@garuda-indonesia.com
Reporter: PR Wire
Editor: PR Wire
Copyright © ANTARA 2014
