The Indonesian Ambassador to Spain, Slamet Santoso Mustafa, said Gadair is seeking traffic rights to both Jakarta and Denpasar (Bali) via international flights departing from the Spanish capital of Madrid. According to the Ambassador, Gadair's main attraction in flying to Indonesia is the island of Bali, seen as an easy sell to Spanish holidaymakers.
Meanwhile, Musthofa Taufik Abdul Aziz, the Economic Counselor of the Indonesian Embassy in Madrid, reports that more than 30 Spanish investors in held meetings with the Chairman of the Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board, M. Lufti, in Madrid on June 3, 2008. Following that meeting, Gadair wrote the Madrid Embassy on June 7, 2008, formally declaring its interest in opening air service between the two countries. That letter also requested detailed data on Spanish visitors to Indonesia and Bali.
In 2007, a total 17,427 Spanish citizens arrived through Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport.
According to Musthofa, Gadair is seeking to acquire Spain's second largest airline Spainair.
Mustofa's comments predate the recent tragic crash of a Spainair aircraft in Madrid on Wednesday, August 20, 2008 that claimed 153 lives.
