Air Niugini
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Air Niugini is the national airline of Papua New Guinea, based in Port Moresby. It operates a domestic network, as well as limited international services. Its main base is Jacksons International Airport, Port Moresby. Niugini is the Tok Pisin word for New Guinea.
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History
The airline was established in November 1973 as the national airline of Papua New Guinea with the government holding 60% of the shares, Ansett (16%), Qantas (12%) and Trans Australia Airlines (TAA) (12%). It started as an exclusively domestic carrier; however it expanded to offer international services shortly thereafter. In founding the airline, the government aimed to encourage regional development in a country without an extensive road network, which had until that time relied largely on the Sepik River as its main trade conduit.
International services commenced very early on in the history of the airline with a leased Boeing B720 from 6 February 1976 to 2 February 1977. This was later replaced with a Boeing 707 ([link] Boeing 707 Fleet Detail]). It is believed that earlier services were carried out by Douglas DC-3 aircraft. In 1976 the government bought out the Qantas and TAA holdings and in 1980 acquired the Ansett shares to make the airline wholly government owned.
In 1984 the airline replaced the two Boeing 707 aircraft with an Airbus A300 on lease from TAA. This was replaced several years later with two Airbus A310s as the carrier expanded to offer flights principally between Australian Eastern capital cities and destinations in Asia such as Singapore and Manila.
The airline endured considerable hardships in the 1990s, with unrest in Bougainville and a volcanic eruption in Rabaul destabilising the company's busiest domestic services. The Asian currency crisis also made an impact, with Air Niugini posting financial losses during this decade. The government of Papua New Guinea responded by cutting jobs from the airline, suppressing wages, as well as opening offices in Asia and Europe in an attempt at having the airline run profitably. The reforms bore fruit by 2003, with the airline posting a profit of US$15.8 million for that year.
A Boeing 767 was acquired in August 2002, replacing the Airbus aircraft, and was used to offer expanded international services. Combined with aggressive pricing, this made it the most competitively priced airline on many of its routes. A sharing agreement still exists with Qantas in which that airline buys "blocks" of seats on Air Niugini's flights between Port Moresby and Australia. Qantas also has a code share agreement for seats between Cairns in Australia and Port Moresby.
The financial turnaround seems to have stymied pressure from various sectors, including the IMF and the Australian Government, to privatise the national carrier. The PNG government has voiced concerns that privatisation would jeopardise domestic routes that provide a vital service to regional people and encourage economic development, but which fail to realise a profit.
From September 2004 Fokker F100 have been introduced to start to replace the aging Fokker F28 aircraft which are used on domestic routes.
In March 2006 Transport and Civil Aviation Minister Don Polye announced an open air policy, which would allow other airlines to fly international routes into and from Papua New Guinea. The policy will take effect in 2007. [(Pacific Magazine)]
Services
Air Niugini operates the following services (at July 2006):
- Domestic scheduled destinations: Alotau, Buka, Goroka, Hoskins, Kavieng, Kundiawa (currently suspended), Lae, Lihir Island, Madang, Manus Island, Mendi, Mount Hagen, Popondetta, Port Moresby, Rabaul, Tari, Vanimo and Wewak.
- International scheduled destinations: Brisbane, Cairns, Honiara, Manila, Singapore, Sydney, and Tokyo.
Fleet
The Air Niugini fleet includes the following aircraft:
- 1 Boeing 767–319
- 2 Fokker F100 (Leased from Alliance Airlines)
- 5 Fokker F28-4000
- 3 Bombardier Dash 8 Q200 (Another on order for Oil Search Contract - April 2005)
External links
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