JAKARTA. National flag carrier Garuda Indonesia launched on Tuesday a new, direct route from Denpasar to Chengdu, China.

The move is part of Garuda Indonesia’s strategy to expand its Chinese market, said Garuda commercial and IT director Nina Sulistyowati.

Some 100 million Chinese travelers visit various parts of the world each year, making the country a vital international market for the airline, she added.

“We are optimistic that through Chengdu's market potential, Garuda Indonesia can continue to maximize the international market […] in supporting the company’s business expansion efforts,” she said in an official statement.

The route will serve four flights per week from Denpasar to Chengdu, scheduled on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Meanwhile, flights from Chengdu to Denpasar will depart every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. All flights will use Airbus A330-300 planes, each of which has a total capacity of 24 business seats and 263 economy seats.

Plans for the Denpasar-Chengdu route was first announced last October. The airline had previously rolled out a Denpasar-Chengdu chartered flight service in 2015.

In addition to transporting passengers between Denpasar and Chengdu, the route is also expected to connect visitors to domestic destinations, including Yogyakarta, Ujung Pandang in South Sulawesi, Manado in North Sulawesi and Labuan Bajo in East Nusa Tenggara.

Garuda Indonesia currently serves several routes to China, which include Jakarta-Guangzhou, Jakarta-Beijing, Jakarta-Shanghai, Denpasar-Beijing, Denpasar-Guangzhou and Denpasar-Shanghai.

Editor: Barratut Taqiyyah Rafie