Air Vanuatu has announced it will restart direct flights between Brisbane and the island of Santo in Vanuatu.
As part of a comprehensive new deal between the airlines, Solomon Airlines will operate the re-established route on behalf of Air Vanuatu every Thursday, commencing 8 June 2023.
Under the agreement, Air Vanuatu and Solomon Airlines will strengthen their partnership through streamlined schedules, aircraft sharing and also an expansion of their networks.
“Air Vanuatu is extremely pleased to offer our passengers a direct service from Brisbane to Santo, a Vanuatu destination that we know is very much in demand with Australian travellers,” Air Vanuatu CEO Joseph Laloyer said.
“This announcement represents a fantastic moment in our ongoing recovery since borders reopened mid-last year, and will help further support and boost tourism in the northern part of the country.”
On the enhanced co-operation with Solomon Airlines, Laloyer said the new route would benefit both nations.
“Developing aviation and tourism in our region does not need to be a unique and stand-alone mission,” he stated.
“We are national carriers with similar responsibilities and aims; we are of similar corporate size and we are experiencing the same challenges to sustain our operations.
“With the learnings of the COVID pandemic, the realisation is even greater, that cooperation in our region is crucial to the survival of both airlines.
“At Air Vanuatu, we are very encouraged to embark on this new venture with Solomon Airlines and to build on the long-established collaboration and friendship between us.”
Linking islands
In addition to this, Solomon Airlines will commence a third weekly flight between Port Vila (Vanuatu) and Auckland (New Zealand) for Air Vanuatu.
Launching 5 June 2023, the extra flight will depart Port Vila on Monday with the return service departing Auckland on Tuesday.
The new frequency adds to existing services on Wednesday and also Saturday.
The extra flight also effectively relinks the Solomon Islands to New Zealand, via Vanuatu, with the carriers now working on a codeshare on the route.
“There is a strong synergy between Solomon Airlines and Air Vanuatu that extends from fleet, to operations, to distribution systems,” Solomon Airlines CEO Gus Kraus said.
“This new agreement paves the way for us to help each other, whilst still maintaining the independence of each country’s national carrier.
“We are helping our neighbours and we’re both benefitting, it is only the beginning of opportunities that we can create by leveraging each other’s capabilities.”
Solomon Airlines says it will make “limited changes” to its international and domestic operations from 5 June. But the airline vows to do “its utmost to limit inconvenience to those already booked on flights”.
The new flights will be available through the airlines’ respective distribution channels from May 2023.
Earlier this month, Air Vanuatu grounded flights between Vanuatu and Australia and NZ on account of mechanical issues with its B737.
Meanwhile, this week, Solomon Airlines appointed Airline Marketing Australia (AMA) to oversee the carrier’s relationships with travel partners and agencies in Australia.
