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ational flag carrier Garuda Indonesia is set to join the global airline alliance SkyTeam in another two years in an effort to expand its worldwide network, an executive announced on Monday.

“The effective joining date of Garuda Indonesia to expand SkyTeam’s presence in Southeast Asia is planned for early 2014,” SkyTeam managing director Michael Wisbrun said on the sidelines of the 68th meeting of the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

He said it would take the airline about two years to prepare its integration into the SkyTeam network because the migration of the IT platform into the new system would take time.

Wisbrun said the participation of Garuda would give the airline access to 958 destinations in 173 countries because the alliance currently had 16 members such as Aeroflot, Aeromexico, Air France, China Airlines, Alitalia, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Korean Air and Air Europa.

President director Emirsyah Satar said the company was currently migrating its IT system by using Spain’s Amadeus Altea to become a member of SkyTeam.

“We are improving our IT system to meet the SkyTeam standard because we have to be on par with all the members of the alliance,” Emirsyah said at the same event.

He also said the new technology was part of the airline’s Quantum Leap Program, which sets targets for the airline to have 154 aircraft with an average fleet age of 5 years and 32.5 million passengers in 2015.

He declined to mention the amount of investment required to implement the new technology system.

Currently, the airline flies to 19 international destinations in Southeast Asia, East Asia, the Middle East, Amsterdam and Australia.

International destination passengers throughout last year reached 3.2 million.

He said that Garuda’s expansion through the SkyTeam would benefit the airline a lot more in 2014 because by then the alliance would have more members.

Michael said the alliance would welcome two members this year alone, giving it a stronger foothold in some important economic regions.

“Aerolineas Argentina is scheduled to join SkyTeam on Aug. 29 as the first South American member, strengthening our network in the southern hemisphere. On Nov. 15, Xiamen Airlines, which is based in the flourishing Southeast China region, will further consolidate the alliance’s No. 1 position in Greater China,” Michael said.

As there are still areas in which the alliance can expand its network, SkyTeam continues to monitor options to create further market access in Brazil and India, he said.

During the IATA’s annual general meeting and World Air Transport Summit 2012, the alliance announced several priority initiatives that would further benefit customers.

Among the programs are SkyPriority, a series of distinctive branded priority airport services consistently offered to Elite Plus, first and business class customers throughout the alliance network, and the SkyPort, to improve airport experience and achieve synergies that will increase the number of shared locations worldwide.

Meanwhile, IATA’s 2012 global airline profit forecast remains unchanged at US$3 billion, masking a widening gap between regions as only North and South America saw their profit outlook improve.

The Geneva-based grouping of some 240 airlines regularly issues forecasts for an industry whose activities are seen as a barometer of indicators such as business confidence and trade.

Director general Tony Tyler told IATA’s annual meeting in Beijing that business was improving for American carriers, many of whom have been keeping a tight lid on capacity.

“The rest of the world is seeing reduced profitability. For European carriers, the business environment is deteriorating rapidly, resulting in sizable losses,” Tyler said.

IATA almost doubled its forecast for European airline industry losses in 2012 to $1.1 billion, from the previous $600 million in losses forecast in March.

It gave a hefty boost to its forecast for North American industry profits, to $1.4 billion from a previous estimate of $0.9 billion.