Indonesian airline recruiting Taiwanese flight

Indonesia's flagship airline, PT Garuda Indonesia, began interviewing flight attendants in Taiwan yesterday in preparation for its resumption of flights to Taiwan, with the ability to speak Taiwanese one of the main skills required. Around 60 percent of passengers who fly between Jakarta and Taipei are Taiwanese, which makes fluency in the widely spoken local language, also known as Hoklo, a basic requirement, said Garuda Indonesia Taiwan General Manager Joseph Tendean. Tendean said the airline is recruiting flight attendants in Taiwan for the first time instead of sticking with Indonesian personnel because of the especially friendly attitude of Taiwanese cabin crew members he had seen on flights with other airlines. Garuda hopes to recruit 20 flight attendants in Taiwan and received about 900 applications for the positions and 200 people made the cut for Friday's first round of interviews and tests, which also included testing in English and Mandarin Chinese. A second round of interviews is scheduled for April 16, and the 20 Taiwanese who get hired will start work in September, flying about 60 hours per month for a monthly salary of between NT$40,000 (US$1,353.87) and NT$50,000. The carrier will resume flights between Indonesia and Taiwan on May 25 after having dropped service to Taiwan in September 2004 when the travel industry was still reeling in the aftermath of a global outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).