Airline Lion Air is one of the most well-known airlines in Indonesia. Targeting all flight routes in Indonesia, other advantages of Lion Air are mura ticket prices, which is why Lion Air is the belle of economy class flights in Indonesia.
But do you know who the Lion Air airline owner is? airline owner Lion Air is Rusdi Kirana.
Starting from ticket sellers or as people usually call ticket brokers, that’s the initial job of a Rusdi Kirana. Aside from being a ticket broker, the man born on August 17, 1963 is also an American typewriter seller “Brother”.
Together with his brother Rusdi after graduating from the Faculty of Economics, University of Pancasila, he prepared a Travel Agent business called Lion Tour.
When the Transportation Department deregulated the aviation industry in 1999, Rusdi Kirana then saw great opportunities in Indonesia’s aviation business.
He then invited his colleagues at the Glodok market to invest in his new business. There are some who believe and some who do not believe in Rusdi Kirana’s business ideas.
Armed with accumulated capital of around 80 billion rupiah, Rusdi Kirana and his brother Kusnan Kirana founded Mentari Lion Airlines on September 2, 1999.
Part of the company was controlled by Rusdi Kirana and his brother. At the beginning of the establishment of Mentari Lion Airlines, Rusdi Kirana also served as director and his siblings were mostly behind the scenes.
Lion Air is the name chosen by Rusdi Kirana with a lion head logo. The first office of Lion Air is in a rented shop house in Harmoni, Central Jakarta.
The historical day of Lion Air’s establishment for Rusdi Kirana took place in July 2000. Armed with a rented Boeing 737-200 aircraft, Lion Air owned by Rusdi Kira flew first from Jakarta to Pontianak.
The first years were a difficult year for Rusdi Kirana because not many people believed in his airline.
Rusdi Kirana is now known as a pioneer of cheap flights in the country. In fact, he has been named the most influential business figure of a national economic media.
It was a shock to the Indonesian aviation world when President Director of Lion Air Rusdi Kirana and President and Airbus CEO Fabrice Bregier signed a letter of purchase of Lion Air to 234 Airbus A320 aircraft at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Monday (3/18).
Lion Air officially bought 234 new Airbus A320 aircraft consisting of 109 A320neo, 65 A321neo, & 60 A320ceo aircraft. In they will spend funds of USD 24 billion (Rp 233 trillion). In fact, in 2011, Lion Air has announced the purchase of 201 Boeing aircraft worth USD 22 billion (IDR 214 trillion).
Currently Lion Air is included in the ranks of low-cost airlines despite many problems that occur but Lion Air remains the best-selling economic airline in Indonesia.
