Garuda Goes On A Spending Spree...

The Farnborough International Airshow has been a bit of a success in dollar spend terms with some USD 28 billion being spent on planes. Of this, Garuda has placed an order for six Airbus A330-200 aircraft. Garuda also managed to scrounge up enough left-over cash to place a USD 420 million order with Rolls Royce for the supply, service, and maintenance of engines for part of its fleet.

Does this mean that business is booming for Garuda? Or does it require new aircraft to ensure that it remains authorised to fly into the European zone? What interested me in this little news piece was that I recall when I was living in Indonesia that there were always financial management questions being raised about Garuda and its viability, which was interesting seeing it is the national carrier and all. So, ordering and taking delivery of six new aircraft from the end of 2012 is seemingly a pretty bold move.

I have only flown Garuda a couple of times. The service on the ground was a little 'iffy' at times, but was always excellent on the plane. I would fly Garuda again. But, I have tended to fly with the cheaper budget airlines when I have had cause to fly.

Indonesia, Armani, and a Garuda...

This is one of those times where you sit back in your chair, shake your head, and wonder out loud whether Indonesian politicians have anything better to do. I understand national pride, I understand the need to protect cultural heritage, and I understand insult.

However, I do not understand why you would want to make a mountain out of a molehill on this issue. Unless, of course you wanted to distract the people's attention from more pressing and important matters such as providing a clear explanation of the Bank Century Bailout so that even non-economic types can understand the need, as the government saw it, to bail out a bank of Bank Century's size during a global financial crisis.

Perhaps there is a need to distract people's attention from the shenanigans going on in the Antasari Azhar trial for pre-meditated murder of a love rival. Or maybe it is as simple as needing to distract people's attention away from the faltering president whose 100-day agenda is looking increasingly unlikely to transpire as opposed to just expiring in the sense of dying where it lay.

So, what is this mountain out of a molehill?

Some members of the House of Representatives (usually representing no one but themselves) decided that they were going to pursue Armani for producing a T-Shirt which allegedly desecrates the national symbol of Indonesia. The offending shirt, or at least the image off of it is in the photo above (photo courtesy of Multibrand), has caused quite a stir. The claims, including one from the Minister of Law and Human Rights, Patrialis Akbar, are that the Garuda Pancasila is patented by Indonesia. Now, if this were true, then the image on the offending Armani t-shirt would need to be more than just similar, wouldn't it?

In my mind it would have to be unmistakeably the Garuda Pancasila that everyone associates with being the national symbol of Indonesia. My guess is that most people throughout the world might have some trouble recognizing their own national symbols let alone those of other countries. Yet, in any event, this hardly seems to be a breach of patent (considering patents are for inventions and I am pretty sure that Indonesia did not invent the Garuda). It is also unlikely a breach of trademark.

If Armani was an Indonesian company, then the most likely law to pursue the company under would be the recently passed Law No. 24 of 2009 which deals with matters relating to national symbols, among other matters. Unfortunately, Law No. 24 of 2009 is not likely to have much extra-territorial application if the idea is to pursue Armani overseas. It is also unlikely to succeed in pursuing Armani stores that sell the goods in Indonesia either.

Brett over at Spruiked takes a peak at this issue in his usual forthright manner, and it is worth a read.

The real question is does the use of the Garuda in this way really offend the sensibilities of the majority of Indonesians? My guess is, No! The common sense of the vast majority of Indonesians need not be questioned. And, it is an unfortunate thing that this vast majority is not in the House of Representatives, because then Indonesians and those of us with an interest in Indonesian affairs would not have to read such drivel as a few members of the House of Representatives exploring the possibility of suing a fashion label for using an image of a mythical creature.

Maybe Indonesians are, on the whole, proud that an image they associate with is used in such a way. It is worth noting that Armani has supposedly apologized for any offense it may have caused.

There really must be more important issues of governance to attend to, right?

Merpati -- Business as Usual

It will come as no surprise to anyone familiar with the Indonesian airline scene that Merpati (PT. Merpati Nusantara) is in trouble again. Perhaps it would be more apt to say that Merpati's troubles continue on in the business as usual manner that the airline is run. Merpati is the Indonesian word for dove.

The government has agreed to inject some IDR 350 billion into the struggling airline. However, this is going to come at some significant cost to the workforce. The government is demanding productivity and efficiency measures be put in place that are to conceivably allow the airline to turn its business fortunes around. What exactly are these productivity and efficiency measure you ask? The government requires that Merpati shed some excess feathers, in this case some 1,300 employees of its current 2,590 employees. It is worth noting that some IDR 220 billion of the bail out fund is to be directed to fulfilling the company's obligations with regard to severance pay for those employees that are to be terminated.

Some of the pilots that are to be terminated will not be lacking for new employment as it is likely some, at least, will be picked up by Garuda which is currently short of qualified pilots.

Merpati was established in 1962 as a subsidiary of Garuda and was spun off in 1997. Merpati was conceived as an airline that would serve pioneering routes. Pioneering routes are defined in Indonesian legislation as routes that serve remote areas or areas where no other form of transportation is possible. The legislation also notes that these routes are likely to be less profitable and perhaps not even profitable at all. Nevertheless, with the idea of pioneering routes at the forefront of the government's thinking the base of Merpati's operations are going to be moved from Jakarta to Makassar in Sulawesi.

Merpati currently operates 19 aircraft. It could operate more but does not have the money available to repair all of the planes it has in its current fleet.

In order to try and make this attempt a successful one there has been a new President Director appointed to oversee the expected improvements in the management of Merpati.

It will be interesting to see how many more chances the government gives Merpati to revive its fortunes before trying to sell it off to an interested investor. There is great potential for well-managed regional and budget airlines in Indonesia. The key here is "well-managed" and that has not always been a feature of the airline industry in Indonesia.

Garuda Pilot -- Trial

Captain Marwoto Komar the pilot of the ill-fated Garuda flight that crashed in Yogyakarta on 7 March 2007 is to be tried for his alleged negligence in the deaths of 21 people and the injuries of many more.

The trial is to be held in the Sleman District Court (near Yogyakarta) in Central Java. The trial is scheduled to begin on Thursday. There is to be a panel of judges to hear the case.

The final report by Indonesia's air safety investigators stated that Komar was so "fixated" with landing that he ignored 15 alarms and the pleas of his co-pilot. Nevertheless, Komar's arrest was greeted with protests and claims that the data from the black boxes and other flight recording equipment was inadmissible in a court of law pursuant to prevailing laws, regulations, and practices.

This means that the police would have had to obtain evidence that did not rely on the black boxes or the flight recorder information. Obviously the Office of the Public Prosecutor believes that the police have done a sufficient job in this regard to warrant proceeding to trial.

Update on Garuda Pilot

Well, it seems that Garuda in a show of solidarity with the pilot allegedly responsible for the crash that killed 21 people in Yogyakarta last March (2007), it has offered the gentlemen the option of resigning or being fired. He, Captain Marwoto Komar, opted to resign.

Apparently, the final report suggests the the pilot was so 'fixated' with landing that he ignored 15 warnings lamps and alarms.

The unfortunate pilot is being charged with negligence for his actions leading up to the crash. He is currently out on bail.

Garuda Pilot Arrested

Some might argue that this particular arrest has been a long time in coming. How does someone kill 21 people so publicly and seem to be immune from prosecution. Ahhh, but no more, the police have bitten the bullet on this one and have arrested Captain Marwoto Komar and charged him with manslaughter in the deaths of 21 passengers in the crash that occurred on 7 March 2007. The arrest came at the end of a 10-hour interrogation. They should also charge him with subsidiary offences relating to the greivous bodily harm he did to many other passengers as well.

His lawyers are claiming that pilots of commercial aircraft should not have to face criminal prosecution for mistakes. I disagree. When you assume the controls of a passenger aircraft and you have the lives of 100s of people in your hands there is a reasonable expectation that you will do your job professionally and in a manner that does not endanger the lives of your passengers or crew. A captain that ignores 15 separate warning indicators and attempts to land a commercial aircraft at twice the recommended speed deserves to be punished.

Interestingly, it would seem that the police have been able to secure independent testimony as the Indonesian National Transportation Safety Committee has said the data contained on the voice recorders and in the black boxes cannot be used in a criminal investigation or prosecution of the Captain. The most likely source of this corroborating evidence is going to be the co-pilot for what was going on in the cockpit at the time. The airforce, who run the Yogyakarta airport (Adi Sucipto), have allowed police to interview air traffic controllers on the proviso that the air traffic controllers are not to become suspects in the investigation. These interviews will also shed some much needed light on what transpired on that fateful day.

The dossier or case file needs to be completed and then handed to the Office of the Public Prosecutor for the purposes of handing down an indictment. This is a case of potentially interesting arguments and one that I will follow so expect some updates as they become available.