Lion Air is a Mysterious Company: Expert
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Senin, 23 Februari 2015 16:48 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Said Didu, a former secretary to State Owned Enterprises Minister, has called Lion Air a mysterious company in light of a myriad of unanswered questions surrounding the country’s largest budget carrier.
“Lion Air is a company somewhat mysterious,” Said told Tempo on Sunday, February 22, 2015.
Said cited a report that Lion Air had purchased hundreds of aircraft—comprising Boeing and Airbus airliners—worth Rp500 trillion. Viewed from the business logic, he added, this meant Lion Air’s boss, tycoon Rusdi Kirana, had capital of at least 30 percent of the total loan for the purchase, or around Rp150 trillion.
“So it means his company should be categorized as a big corporation, whereas in fact it is not. This is a bit strange from the business logic,” he said. Lion Air bought 234 passenger jets from European planemaker giant Airbus in March 2013.
The US23.8 billon deal is purportedly the largest purchase in Airbus’ history. The jets bought consisted of the A320 and A321 types. Besides the Airbus fleet, Lion also procured 230 Boeing 737 units worth US$22.4 billion.
“The public does not know where the funding for the purchase stemmed from,” he said.
Said continued that Lion’s finances were undisclosed to the public as the airline was a private company. However, he added, the government had the authority to look into private airlines’ business condition to review its services and guarantee passengers’ safety.
AMIRULLAH