Lion Air

Lion Air is Indonesia's largest private airline and Southeast Asia's largest low-cost carrier, operating an enormous domestic Indonesian network and regional international services from its hub at Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. Founded by the Rusdi Kirana family in 1999, Lion Air transformed Indonesian domestic aviation by introducing genuinely low fares to a market previously served only by expensive full-service carriers. The airline operates the most extensive domestic Indonesian network of any carrier, connecting 50+ cities across the Indonesian archipelago — an operation of extraordinary logistical complexity given the thousands of kilometers and hundreds of islands involved.

Lion Air Group has expanded significantly beyond Indonesia: the group now includes Batik Air (Indonesia's full-service arm), Wings Air (regional turboprop), Thai Lion Air, Malindo Air/Batik Air Malaysia, and affiliates in several other countries. However, Lion Air's reputation was deeply damaged by two fatal Boeing 737 MAX accidents: Lion Air Flight JT610 crashed into the Java Sea on October 29, 2018, killing all 189 aboard — the first of two 737 MAX crashes that led to the aircraft's global grounding.