Board of Fiji Airways looks to get further wide bodied aircrafts - AG

The board of Fiji Airways is looking at getting further wide bodied aircrafts to allow the national airline to fly to longer destinations.

Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Civil Aviation Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum has told parliament this means Fiji Airways could be looking at 787 Dreamliners and A350 aircrafts from Airbus.

A 787 Dreamliner can carry about 335 passengers.

This was highlighted by Sayed-Khaiyum while responding to Fiji First MP Howard Politini who asked whether there are future plans in acquiring more long‑range wide body aircrafts which would compliment an ever-increasing Chinese tourist market with direct flights from Shanghai. 

He says Fiji Airways will be getting two interim A330-300 Series on short term lease for 4 years.

Sayed-Khaiyum also says they are buying 5 new Boeing 737Max-8 which has fuel savings of 15%.

He adds that these significant changes will mean that by the end of 2019, Fiji Airways will have one of the youngest aircraft fleet in the world.

Sayed-Khaiyum says Fiji Airways is keen to fly to Beijing in China but they have to look at things strategically as the Chinese also want to fly to Fiji and pick up people on the way.

He says they look forward to forging a good Air Services Agreement with China.

Opposition MP Viliame Gavoka then said that when the Fiji First government came into the scene they took away the lease arrangements with Air Pacific but now they are going back to leasing.

Sayed-Khaiyum said they are leasing on an interim basis to give Fiji Airways the opportunity to make the right decision on which aircraft it wants to buy.

A question about the possibility of government reviewing the salary and benefits of local pilots was then raised by Opposition MP Mosese Bulitavu.

Bulitavu said there seem to be differences in the salary and benefits of local pilots compared to expatriate pilots.

Sayed-Khaiyum said Fiji Airways has 1,384 employees at present and they are given the necessary rewards based on their performance.

He says in 2017, Fiji Airways hired 22 pilots and 7 were Fijians while Fiji Link also hired 7 pilots of whom 4 were Fijians.

Sayed-Khaiyum says it has to be made clear that the government does not run Fiji Airways.