Garuda Indonesia, the flagship air carrier of the country, is beefing up its international network in the Chinese market with hopes of becoming more competitive in the region.

The move is expected to further facilitate trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.

Since it first entered the market in 2002 with flights from Jakarta to Guangzhou, the company has expanded service to include five daily round-trip flights on the Jakarta-Beijing route and seven on the Jakarta-Guangzhou and Jakarta-Shanghai routes each.

More routes and flights mean a closer business connection between China, the world's second-largest economy and Indonesia, Southeast Asia's fastest-growing economy.

"As the relationship between China and Indonesia becomes closer, Garuda Indonesia hopes to offer the best service to accommodate the traffic between the two countries, both for business and leisure," said Asa Perkasa, general manager of Garuda Indonesia Beijing Branch office.

The increase in the number of flights improves options and provides passengers with a seamless connection between the two countries via its hub in Jakarta, according to the airline.

By adjusting the flight schedule, the waiting time for transfers has also been reduced for travelers from China to Indonesia's tourist destinations, such as Bali, Surabaya and Lombok.

"Frequent flights undoubtedly save us a lot of time," says a Chinese business traveler surnamed Chen. "Daily flights make it possible to travel between Jakarta and Guangzhou, and we will be able to come back home every other day."

In 2011, Garuda Indonesia transported nearly 235,000 passengers on the routes between Indonesia and the Chinese mainland, an increase of 11.9 percent compared to the roughly 210,000 passengers it carried last year.

Heritage plus Comfort

The carrier attributes the growth in the number of passengers to its "Garuda Indonesia Experience", a service concept that offers a high level of on-the-ground and in-flight services combining Indonesia's rich cultural heritage with modern amenities.

The interiors of its fleet of large Boeing and Airbus aircraft feature traditional Indonesian motifs, such as a pattern of woven bamboo panels on the cabin's partition wall. And its crewmembers wear batik, traditional uniforms with Javanese Indonesia prints.

In 2011, the airline launched "Sound of Indonesia" and "Garuda Aromatic Fragrance". A therapeutic scent made from a blend of cloves and other exotic spices, the perfume creates a distinctive atmosphere in all of the company's flights, executive lounges as well as its sales office on the ground.

The launch of these two products completes the "Garuda Indonesia Experience".

"We hope it will make traveling with Garuda Indonesia all the more enjoyable," said Emirsyah Satar, president and CEO of Garuda Indonesia.

After it was first introduced in 2009, the "Garuda Indonesia Experience" earned the airline a string of accolades, including a four-star rating in 2009 by Skytrax, the global benchmark for airline service standards.

The airline was also named the "World's Most Improved Airline" at the Skytrax World Airline Awards in Hamburg and "Asia's leading service quality airline" by the Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation in 2010.

New Moves

Despite its success, the airline's officials say now is no time for complacency. In 2010, the airline introduced an immigration-on-board service in which entry visas are purchased when passengers check in, and two Indonesian immigration officers complete in-flight passport clearance on the way to Jakarta. This feature will be added to flights from Shanghai to Jakarta later this year.

The company is also recruiting Chinese attendants to meet the growing demand among Chinese passengers. All aircraft flying routes to and from China will be staffed with at least one Chinese stewardess.

All these changes are part of the airline's "Quantum Leap" plan, which also includes increasing its fleet from 89 to 194 aircraft as well as recruiting 400 new pilots by 2015. The strategy aims to boost the airline's competitiveness significantly, with the goal of becoming a five-star carrier by 2015.

In 2011, the airline carried 17.1 million passengers. Its annual sales reached 27 trillion rupiah (US$2.98 billion), up 39 percent, which demonstrates the airline's success in improving operations and asset utilization over the years.

Its international network also grew by 12 percent, much higher than the average increase of 8 percent among Indonesia's airlines.

These changes are steps in Garuda Indonesia's transformation and progress toward becoming one of Asia's leading airlines.

Garuda Indonesia is the country's first and largest airline. It currently owns 81 different types of aircraft and offers international and domestic routes to more than 43 destinations.

In China, it operates 40 flights in total flying from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong to Jakarta and the popular Island of Bali each week.