Garuda Indonesia CEO to step down

Emirsyah Satar, Garuda Indonesia CEO

Satar told Reuters in an interview that he will leave Garuda because current regulations prevent any CEO from serving more than two, five-year terms. He said he would step down late this year or early next year. 

Emirsyah Satar has indicated that he will quit as CEO of Garuda Indonesia after a 10-year stint during which restructured operations and restored confidence in the Indonesian flag carrier. 

Satar told Reuters in an interview that he will leave Garuda because current regulations prevent any CEO from serving more than two, five-year terms. He said he would step down late this year or early next year. 

In the meantime he will focus on ensuring the growth of its loss-making budget unit, Citilink. 

“We see that the market is growing but the budget travellers’ growth is higher than the premium, where Garuda is,” he said. “When passengers pick an airline, they want to see frequencies, network coverage. 

“Therefore, size matters and therefore right now, we are really pushing Citilink to grow.”