Fiji Airways (FJ, Nadi) is considering entering into joint ventures and equity investment in other carriers in the South Pacific region, CEO Andre Viljoen has told Air Transport World.
"No partnerships are in the works just yet. We’ll evaluate them as the opportunities present themselves," Chief Commercial Officer Marc Cavaliere clarified to ch-aviation.
The Fijian carrier recently became the first airline to sign up for the Oneworld Connect initiative, a status short of full membership in the alliance but giving significant benefits to the airline and the passengers. The carrier is part-owned by Qantas, which holds a 46% stake in Fiji Airways Group. The Fijian airline is not associated by equity or joint venture agreements with any other airline, although it has a broad scope of codeshare partnerships in place.
In 2017, Fiji Airways helped launch Samoa Airways (OL, Apia Faleolo) through the use of its established infrastructure in sales, commercial, operations, and maintenance, although it did not take any equity in the start-up. The Samoan airline could be one of the prospective partners for Fiji Airways.
Most of the airlines in the South Pacific, such as Air Vanuatu, Real Tonga Airlines, and Solomons - Solomon Airlines, are significantly smaller businesses than Fiji Airways. The larger carriers in the region include Aircalin and Air Tahiti Nui.
