Lion Air

Infobox_Airline
airline=Lion Air
logo=Lionair logo.pnglogo_size=200
fleet_size=46 (+178 orders)
destinations=40
IATA=JT
ICAO=LNI
callsign=LION INTER
parent=
founded=1999
headquarters=Jakarta, Indonesia
key_people=Rusdi Kirana (Chief Executive Officer)
hubs=Soekarno-Hatta International Airport
focus_cities=
frequent_flyer=Lion Passport
lounge=Lion King Lounge
alliance=
website= http://www.lionair.co.id

Lion Air is Indonesia’s largest private carrier Fact|date=May 2007 and Asia’s first hybrid carrier Fact|date=May 2007 which offers both economy- and business-class seating, based in Jakarta, Indonesia. It operates scheduled passenger services on an extensive domestic network from Jakarta to 40 destinations with 210 daily flights (as of May 2008). Lion Air also flies to Singapore, Vietnam and Malaysia. Its full name is PT Lion Mentari Airlines. Its main base is Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Jakarta cite news | title= Directory: World Airlines | work= Flight International | page= 106 | date= 2007-04-03] .

History

The airline was established in October 1999 and started operations on June 30, 2000, when it began scheduled passenger services between Jakarta and Pontianak using a leased Boeing 737-200. It is wholly owned by Rusdi Kirana and family . The airline is also planning to become an IATA member, therefore accompanying Garuda Indonesia.

In January 2008, Lion Air announced plans to start operating from Australia. The new airline, to be named Lion Air Australia is set to operate as a domestic and international airline.

Destinations

Lion Air serve the following places (at September 2008) [http://www.lionair.co.id/route_map.htm] :

Domestic scheduled destinations

International scheduled destinations

*Singapore
*Ho Chi Minh City
*Hong Kong (postponed) [http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/12/content_7056575.htm]
*Jeddah (begins mid 2009) [http://mybusinessblogging.com/indonesia-business/2008/07/13/lion-air-will-landing-at-jeddah-and-riyadh-arab-saudi/]
*Riyadh (begins mid 2009) [http://mybusinessblogging.com/indonesia-business/2008/07/13/lion-air-will-landing-at-jeddah-and-riyadh-arab-saudi/]
*Kuala Lumpur
*Penang

Incidents and accidents

Incidents include:
*In 2002, one of their flights, Lion Air Flight 386, crashed on take-off and was written off; however, no-one was killed.
*In November 2004, a McDonnell Douglas MD-82, Lion Air Flight 538, crashed in Surakarta, killing 25 people. The alleged corrupted accident report attributed the cause of the crash to poor airport conditions. Real data, however, showed pilot error and lack of reserve fuel forcing the pilot to attempt to land in bad weather. Fact|date=June 2007
*24 December 2006: A Boeing 737-400 had a hard landing in Makassar [Flight International 13-19 March 2007] .
*1 October 2007: A Boeing 737-900ER's (registered as PK-LFJ) tail struck the ground while taking off, causing a 2.5 m tear in cargo area of the plane. [ [http://www.republika.co.id/koran_detail.asp?id=309640&kat_id=122 Republika October 6, 2007] ]
* December 2007 : The engine cover and tail pipe of a McDonnell Douglas MD-90 fell off on the runway of Soekarno-Hatta Airport.

Fleet

The Lion Air fleet includes the following aircraft (as of 9 July 2008) [http://www.ch-aviation.ch/aircraft.php?search=set&airline=JT&al_op=1] :

Lion Air's average fleet age is 13.1 years old in April 2008. [ [http://www.airfleets.net/ageflotte/Lionair.htm Lion Air Fleet Age] ]

From 2007 until 2012, 144 Boeing 737-900ERs will be delivered from the total 178 aircraft ordered to strengthen Lion Air's fleet. The 737-900ER is the newest member of Next Generation 737 family with the most advanced single-aisle commercial aircraft in the world. All other aircraft, including the Boeing 737 Classics family and the McDonnell Douglas/Boeing MD-80 family, are being phased out to give space for their new aircraft. There is a plan to buy the Airbus A320-200 aircraft as well.

First to fly Boeing 737-900ER

On May 26, 2005, Lion Air signed a preliminary agreement with Boeing for the purchase of up to 60 Next Generation Boeing 737 aircraft, valued at $3.9 billion. These would replace the current fleet and provide for further expansion. Subsequently in July 2005, Lion Air confirmed a contract for 30 Boeing 737-900ERs, with options for another 30. It can carry up to 215 passengers in a single-class layout, and will be powered by CFM56-7B26 turbofan engines.

On July 17, 2006, Lion Air announced that it has converted options for another 30 Boeing 737-900ERs into firm orders (now total of 60 aircraft on order), with deliveries commencing early 2010 through to 2012.

On April 27, 2007, Boeing delivered the first Boeing 737-900ER to launch customer Lion Air. The aircraft was delivered in a special dual-paint scheme that combines Lion Air's trademark lion on its vertical stabilizer and the Boeing livery colors on the fuselage.

On June 18, 2007, Lion Air announced at the Paris Air Show orders for an additional 40 737-900ER planes bringing its orders to 100.

On December 4, 2007, Lion Air announced 22 additional order of 737-900ERs, bringing the total order to 122.

On February 19, 2008, Lion Air added 56 of the 737-900ERs which adds the order to 178 planes during the 2008 Singapore Airshow.

External links

* [http://www.lionair.co.id/ Lion Air]
* [http://www.ch-aviation.ch/aircraft.php?search=set&airline=JT&al_op=1 Lion Air Fleet]

References