Indonesia`s Lion Air to buy more Boeing 737-900s

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia's largest private airline, Lion Air, plans to buy more Boeing 737-900 series jets, to support its regional expansion to a number of countries, including Australia, its top executive said on Tuesday.

Rusdi Kirana, Lion Air's president director, told Reuters the purchase would be in addition to 122 jets of the same type that the company had previously ordered from Boeing.

"We are planning to expand to other countries in the region. The previous order was not enough," Kirana said by telephone. He declined to disclose the number of additional jets the firm planned to buy or the value of the deal.

"I cannot give the numbers for now. The deal will be signed in February during the Singapore Airshow," he added.

Lion Air recently ordered an additional 22 Boeing Co 737-900 series planes as part of its expansion plans, lifting its total orders at the U.S. firm to 122 jets, with a total list price of $7 billion.

The carrier had said it was looking at possible expansion in six countries -- Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Australia.

"We are in the process of setting up our operation in Australia... We are planning to allocate six of our jets there catering to 10 cities," Kirana said referring to international flights from Indonesia to 10 Australian cities.

Lion has said it plans to raise up to $600 million to acquire stakes or set up new airlines in a number of Asian countries over the next five years.

The airline currently has a fleet of around 40 jets on 32 routes.

Lion Air has been aggressively expanding in Indonesia's fast-growing airline industry in a country of more than 220 million people spread across more than 17,000 islands.

The carrier is also expected sign a 10-year $1 billion contract next year with Delta Air Lines , under which the U.S airline will provide maintenance and services for itsfleet.

Indonesia's airline industry has grown rapidly since the government liberalised the sector after the financial crisis in the late 1990s.

But a series of accidents has raised questions over whether safety has been compromised and whether the infrastructure and personnel can cope with the huge increase.

It has also prompted ban from the European Union on Indonesian carriers flying to Europe.

There have been calls from some Indonesian officials to modernise ageing fleets to help improve safety.