TEMPO.CO, Pekanbaru - State-run airliner Garuda Indonesia of Pekanbaru branch office planned to open the route of Pekanbaru-Medan and vice versa in a bid to improve its service.

“First flight is planned to commence on January 12, 2019,” said Garuda Indonesia of Pekanbaru Marketing Communication Eko Baseptriadi in Pekanbaru Monday, December 17.

Eko expected that the new route would boost the tourist arrivals in North Sumatra and Riau. “This is one of Garuda Indonesia’s effort to support the tourism sector and boost business and economic potential from the connection between busiest air routes in Sumatra,” he noted.

The openness of new route is part of Garuda Indonesia’s commitment to support the program of government in enhancing the connectivity between islands and cities. “Especially in developing national tourism,” Eko added.

The flight of Pekanbaru-Medan route and vice versa, Eko continued, will be active on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. For more information or ticket booking, would-be passengers could access the official website garuda-indonesia.com, mobile app, or 24-hour contact center at 0 804 1 807 807.

People could also visit Garuda Indonesia`s booth sales in Pekanbaru. “The flying time from Sultan Syarif Kasim (SSK) II Airport to Kuala Namu Airport will start at 20:00 p.m and land at 21:10 p.m,” Eko said, adding that the flight will depart at 18:15 p.m from Kuala Namu Airport and will arrive in SSK II Airport at 19:20 p.m local times.