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Get Around Indonesia By Plane

Indonesia is the largest archipelago country in the world, and the only option of rapid transportation is to get around Indonesia by plane, especially for a long distance trip. Garuda Air Lines, the state-owned domestic carrier, is known as the largest carrier In Indonesia. In the recent years, some lower cost competitors have been up spring, and among them, the famous ones are Air Asia, Lion Air, Mandala and Batavia Air. For the less popular routes, and also for the eastern routes of Indonesia, the plane services are taken by Merpati Air Lines, Sriwijaya Air Lines, Jatayu Air Lines, Air Fast Air Lines, and some other smaller ones. If you are going to a very remote destination, such as Papua’s settlements, you will not find any scheduled services. You will have to charter a small plane, or you may take a ride with the missionaries.

Indonesia Airplane 300x174 Get Around Indonesia By Plane


You need to be quite careful in taking certain carrier to get around Indonesia by plane, because some of them might not have good safety standards, and might also not punctual or even conduct frequent cancellations. There are some terrible plane crashes in the last few years, including Mandala, Adam Air and Lion Air. The planes used in these major airlines companies are commonly the plane made in the 1970s and 1980s. These planes are the flown ones from other operators, and unfortunately do not get a good maintenance. Among these companies, Garuda, Mandala, and Lion Air are the ones which just bought newest air craft directly from the manufacturers to replace the old ones in their fleet. Garuda and Air Asia are having the International standards, and are considered as the safest ones among many others. Taking a plane trip, even in the old aircraft, might be something much far comfortable regarding to the carnage of Indonesian’s roads. It is much safer as well, compared to taking the bus for the same distance trip.

Prices are low by international standards, with more or less any domestic return flight available for under US$100 even on short notice, and fares for a fraction of that if you plan ahead. The hardest part is often finding what carriers serve what route and making a reservation, as many companies have not yet discovered the joys of the Internet, much less set up online booking engines. When traveling off the beaten track, it’s imperative to reconfirm early and often, as frequencies are low and paid-up, occasionally even checked-in passengers are bumped off with depressing regularity if a VIP happens to show up. Make sure you arrive at the airport at least 2 hours before the departure time, because airline staff often sell your seat to other passengers if you are late.

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