On November 18, 2011, Lion Air announced its intentions to enter the full service market with the announcement of a premium subsidiary by the name of Space Jet;[6] the airline was to be a full-service subsidiary to compete with the Indonesian flag carrier, Garuda Indonesia, which at the time was the only operating full service carrier (monopoly) serving the Indonesian market.

[10] The airline began operations on May 3, 2013 using Boeing 737-900ERs leased from Lion Air, and at that point became the country's third full service carrier after Garuda Indonesia and the short-lived Pacific Royale Airways.

[1] The new service offered passengers a personal television (in-flight entertainment system) in every seat, light snacks and free meals, and seat pitches of 32 inches (81 cm) in economy class and 45 inches (114 cm) in business class, as well as a free baggage allowances.

[15] The airline announced its intention to use the aircraft to fly to Saudi Arabia, carrying umrah passengers to Jeddah and Medina, complementing Lion Air's existing service.

[16][17] Medina later became the airline's first long haul route when it launched flights from Surabaya carrying hajj pilgrims on December 17 of that year.

[19][20] Controversy arose in which members of the People's Representative Council questioned the decision to have Batik Air operate the repatriation flight in place of the state-owned Garuda Indonesia; the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation later issued a statement justifying the choice, citing Batik's existing permit to fly to Wuhan.

On narrow body aircraft, the business class cabin is equipped with 12 recliner seats in a 2-2 configuration featuring a 38 inch (96.5 cm) pitch, along with charging ports and individual touch screen IFE monitors.

On the Airbus A330-300 aircraft, the business class cabin consists of 18 angle-flat seats in a 2-2-2 configuration, each equipped with personal IFE monitors.