Statement from the Attorney-General and Minister Responsible for Civil Aviation on Suspension of Fiji Airways International Flight Routes – Friday, 20 March 2020
In light of the unprecedented impact of
the global COVID-19 pandemic on the aviation industry, our national carrier,
Fiji Airways, has announced a suspension schedule for 95% of its international
flight routes. This is the most stringent scale back in the airline’s 68-year
history.
Fiji Link domestic services will remain in effect but may be adjusted depending
on demand. To continue to assist importers and exporters, Fiji Airways is
actively seeking advanced commitments to facilitate weekly freight service
flights from Nadi-Los Angeles, Nadi-Sydney and Nadi-Auckland. Those looking to
take advantage of this service should contact Fiji Airways Head of Cargo
Operations Athil Narayan by e-mail at athil.narayan@fijiairways.com
or phone at 9908129.
The suspension schedule on passenger travel will come into effect as
follows:
– Fiji Airways will operate one Nadi-Sydney return service on Saturday 21 March and Sunday 22 March, and suspend the service after that. Nadi-Los Angeles return services will operate on Saturday 21 March and Sunday 22 March, and be suspended after the last Los Angeles-Nadi flight returns to Fiji on 24 March.
– Fiji Airways will operate the last return Auckland-Nadi service on Sunday 22
March. The final South Pacific return services between Nadi or Suva and
Nuku’alofa, Honiara and Funafuti will operate on Saturday 21 March.
– Return services between Nadi and Brisbane, Melbourne, Christchurch,
Wellington, Hong Kong, Tokyo (Narita), Apia, Tarawa, Christmas Island
(Kiritimati), Vava’u, San Francisco and Honolulu are suspended immediately.
– Direct return services between Suva and Sydney, Auckland and Port Vila, along
with services between Apia-Honolulu and Christmas Island (Kiritimati)-Honolulu
are also suspended with immediate effect.
– Twice-weekly services between Singapore and Nadi will continue.
This suspension schedule will remain in place through the end of May 2020,
where further travel restrictions may be announced if deemed necessary. Fiji
Airways will be contacting customers affected by this suspension schedule
directly over the coming days.
Anyone who –– due to the confinement order in place in the Lautoka confined
area –– will be unable to make their pre-scheduled flights (domestic or
international) will be not be charged fees or penalised.
Fiji Airways is working closely with foreign embassies and governments to
arrange for one-off repatriation flights to and from Sydney, Auckland, Los Angeles,
Tokyo and Hong Kong to allow foreign nationals to safely return home and permit
Fijian citizens living abroad to return to Fiji.
All passengers, including all Fijians, arriving from overseas destinations will
be screened prior to boarding and medically checked on arrival to Fiji. Upon
arrival, these passengers will all be required to undergo 14 days of
self-quarantine, in line with the Fijian Government’s sweeping measures to
prevent a large-scale outbreak of COVID-19 in Fiji.
The repatriation flights schedule and booking options can be found on Fiji
Airways website.
In light of these suspensions, Fiji Airways has announced they will be
re-assessing future staffing requirements. The Fijian Government remains
committed to ensuring that employees throughout the country who are impacted by
the global COVID-19 economic crisis have their rights upheld and best interests
protected.