BBN Airlines Indonesia (7B, Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta) has commenced scheduled passenger flights, launching what will be daily Jakarta Soekarno Hatta-Surabaya roundtrips on September 27, 2024. Despite obtaining its air operator's certificate (AOC) for commercial passenger flights from Indonesia's civil aviation authority (Direktorat Jenderal Perhubungan Udara - DJPU) in March, until now, the Avia Solutions Group subsidiary has only operated as an ACMI carrier.
ADS-B data shows B737-800 PK-BBH (msn 36121) operated the first scheduled services as flight 7B763/764. Beginning September 30, the airline will start daily Jakarta-Balikpapan roundtrips, to be followed by the start of daily Jakarta-Denpasar roundtrips on October 2.
BBN Airlines Indonesia has three B737-800s, which until mid-September were all operating for SpiceJet (SG, Delhi International). PK-BBF (msn 29676), PK-BBG (msn 39390), and PK-BBH all ferried from Delhi to Jakarta on September 10. The operator also has a pair of B737-800(BCF)s and is expecting a B737-400(SF).
Speaking to ch-aviation earlier this year, BBN Airlines Indonesia chairman Martynas Grigas flagged the arrival of the three passenger-configured aircraft, noting that three aircraft was the minimum requirement to secure an Indonesian passenger AOC. However, at the time he also suggested that the passenger aircraft were more likely to be used for ACMI services than scheduled services. According to ch-aviation PRO airlines data, BBN Airlines Indonesia becomes the country's 14th scheduled passenger operator.
Grigas said there were considerable untapped ACMI opportunities in Australia and Southeast Asia. Since then, BBN Airlines Indonesia has obtained a foreign air operator's certificate (FAOC) from Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority and similar authorisations from the relevant agencies in the Philippines and Singapore.
