Air Pacific

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Air Pacific 747

Air Pacific 787

Air Pacific is the international airline of Fiji and is based in Nadi. It operates scheduled services to Australia, Canada, Japan, Kiribati (Christmas Island), New Zealand, USA, Tonga and Samoa. Its main base is Nadi International Airport.

Contents

1 Code Data
2 History
3 Destinations
4 History
5 Fleet
6 External links

Code Data

IATA Code: FJ
ICAO Code: FJI
Callsign: Pacific

History

Air Pacific Logo till the 1990s

The airline was established and started operations in 1951. It was founded by Australian aviator Harold Gatty. Prior to 1971 the company operated as Fiji Airways. Air Pacific began service to the USA in1983.

Except for 2001, the airline has been profitable for every year from 1995 to 2004. Over 500,000 passengers were carried in 2004.

Air Pacific is owned by the Fiji Government (51%), Qantas (46.3%) and the governments of Kiribati, Tonga, Nauru and Samoa (1%).

The airline was responsible for starting the first ever schedualed international services to the capital of Australia, Canberra. While the service operated twice weekly for a number of months it is now suspended.

Destinations

See full article: Air Pacific destinations

History

Air Pacific has been serving the South Pacific since the late 1940s. Timeline of significant events:

1947 Registered as Katafaga Estates Limited by Australian aviator Harold Gatty
1951 Commenced regular domestic services. Over the years, Air Pacific's routes have been serviced by aircraft including Dragon Rapides, De Havilland Herons, DHA-3 Drovers, a McDonnell Douglas Turbo-Beaver and Douglas DC-3s.
1971 Name changed to "Air Pacific." Fleet changed to Aerospace BAC1-11s and Hawker Siddeley 748s.
1974 Commenced services to Auckland.
1975 Commenced services to Brisbane via Nouméa.
1983 Began services to Honolulu from Nadi with a McDonnell Douglas DC-10.
1985 Formalized Management Support Agreement with Qantas.
1986 1st Year of profit. Air Pacific has been profitable every year since 1986.
1998 Qantas increased its equity in Air Pacific to 46.05%. The Fiji Government holds 51%. Staff now number 730, and the Engineering department was corporatised in September.
1999 Delivery of two Boeing 737-800s (DQ-FJG Island of "Kadavu" and DQ-FJH "Island of Gau")
2000 Due to political crises and ensuing dramatic decline in tourism arrivals, second of leased 747s (DQ-FJI) returned to Qantas.
2002 April 20 - 3rd service to Narita, Japan commenced
2003 April 14 - 1st leased 747-400 (DQ-FJJ "Island of Vanua Levu") enters service; May 30 - $25.14 million profit announced;

June 26 - 2nd leased 747-400 (DQ-FJL "Island of Viti Levu" delivered; June 27 - 4th service to Los Angeles commenced; June 28 - 747-200 returned to Qantas

Fleet

The aircraft fleet currently consists of (at February 2005):

2 Boeing 747-400 (Both leased from Singapore Airlines )
1 Boeing 767-300ER
1 Boeing 737-700
2 Boeing 737-800

Future Fleet Expansion: On April 25, 2006, Air Pacific announced an order for 5 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners. These aircraft will replace the airline's 767 and 747 aircraft. The first 787 for Air Pacific will be delivered in 2011. [link]

It has purchased 2 ATR-42 from Air Mauritius. It intends to use these aircraft mostly on domestic routes starting July 2006.

External links

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