09 May, 2009

Air Pacific


Air Pacific Limited, Fiji's international airline, operates international and domestic services around the Pacific and to North America and Hong Kong. It is also a partner with the frequent flyer programmes of Qantas, American Airlines, and Alaska Airlines    (though not the larger Oneworld airline alliance to which Qantas and American are key members). It has its head office at the Air Pacific Maintenance & Administration Centre in Nadi.

It's a small airline with a fleet of 3 Boeing 737's, 2 Boeing 747's and 1 767. (Not including Pacific Sun)

The airline shows sign of the finacial instability of the region and has recently lost a number of pilots to other airlines,  where pay and conditions are much better.   Service on-board is said to be good,  although dated, however we haven't travelled on the airline, so for that reason the we give the airline a 2 star rating.

Contact
Fiji    679 672 0888    and   679 330 4388                                            
Calling from Australia 1 800 230 150
Calling from New Zealand
0800 800 178
Calling from the USA and Canada1 800 227 4446



The airline was established and started operations in 1951. It was founded by Australian aviator Harold Gatty. The company previously operated as Fiji Airways.   The airline was previously headquartered on the grounds of Nausori Airport in Suva.

Air Pacific began service to the USA in 1983. Except for 2001, the airline has been profitable for every year from 1995 to 2004. Over 500,000 passengers were carried in 2004. The airline was responsible for starting the first ever scheduled international services to the capital of Australia, Canberra. While the service operated twice weekly for a number of months it is now suspended.

Air Pacific acquired Sun Air, a domestic airline, in 2007. This formed the basis for Pacific Sun, Air Pacific's domestic and regional subsidiary.

Air Pacific is owned by the Fijian government (51%), Qantas (46.32%). Air New Zealand and the governments of Kiribati, Tonga, Nauru and Samoa each hold minor stakes. It employed 771 people as of March 2007.

In 2008 the airline decided to withdraw from the Japan market. The airline stated that it tried many schemes to re-stimulate demand from Japan, but did not find success.   The same year, Air Pacific withdrew its service to Vancouver, to which it had operated via Honolulu since 2000.

In April 2011, it was announced that Air Pacific had cancelled its order for eight Boeing 787s. Reasons were not immediately clear, but it was expected to be related to the airlines ongoing financial struggles
CabinAir Pacific offer two types of classes on their international services, Pacific Voyager (Economy) and Tabua (Business).

Pacific Voyager ClassPacific Voyager Class accommodates customers with seats with a pitch of 32 inches and a seat width of 18 inches.   Each seat is provided with in-seat entertainment with 12 looped video channels and 8 audio channels. The system is quite out-dated when compared to other international services. Meals and beverages are also provided inclusive with the ticket price when travelling within economy class. Passengers are seated to the rear of the business class area (situated within the nose of the plane) as well as on the second floor of the Boeing 747 aircraft.

 Tabua ClassThe Tabua Class is for business class purchases and includes services such as the in-seat entertainment with 21 looped video channels on the Boeing 747 aircraft. There is a selection of cuisine available to order which is much greater in range than that of economy. Tabua Class on the Boeing 747 also have access to power outlets for charging laptops, and other portable devices. Tabua class customers also are able to utilize the Tabua lounge within Sydney, Nadi and Los Angeles.

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