Real Tonga Airlines (Tongatapu) is set to receive its first Y12E from Harbin Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (Harbin) either at the end of this month or in early August. The turboprop, the first of its type in the island chain, will be used in servicing Tonga's remoter islands.
It remains to be seen how the international community - New Zealand in particular - will react to its entry into service given the diplomatic and economic fallout that occurred when the Tongan carrier introduced its first MA-60 earlier this year.
In a bid to defuse tensions with Wellington, Nuku'alofa last month acquired two Jetstream 32s from Australia to take over the MA-60's routes while it undergoes international certification.
