Tongan gov't targets mid-3Q20 debut for new nat'l carrier

The Government of Tonga has banned all foreign carriers from operating to Tongatapu, the country's sole international gateway, at least through September 12, 2020, to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Tourism announced in its newsletter.

The order affects Air New Zealand (NZ, Auckland Int'l), Fiji Airways (FJ, Nadi), and Talofa Airways (Apia Faleolo). Flag carrier Real Tonga Airlines (R4, Tongatapu) currently operates only domestic routes between various islands of Tonga.

Meanwhile, the Government of Fiji is planning to include Tonga in its list of countries covered by the Pacific Pathway plan. Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said during a media briefing that the government was liaising with its counterparts in Tonga, Tuvalu, and Kiribati to allow their citizens to fly to and from Fiji, where the only WHO-certified COVID-testing facility in the region is. These passengers would still be quarantined for 14 days in Fiji, but could then continue out- or inbound travel to their home countries with COVID-free certificates.

Bainimarama said that...

Real Tonga Airlines (R4, Tongatapu) is close to bankruptcy, with most of its debt pile owed to the country's government, according to a report in the South Pacific Islands publication. The airline's dire situation was revealed by Tevita Lavermaau, the country's Minister of Finance, in a government press statement.

China gifted two aircraft to Tonga to operate its domestic services - a Y12 and an MA-60 - which had subsequently been dry-leased to privately-owned Real Tonga, as the government did not have its own airline. In addition to the lease costs, the carrier also owes outstanding landing fees to the government. Its parlous financial standing comes despite the fact it has the domestic market to itself.

The minister claims that the carrier had been operating at a loss since its inception seven years ago and he has suggested that the airline could be closed down. The country's Prime Minister, Pohiva Tu'i'onetoa, speaking on local radio, had indicated that a proposal had been submitted to Tonga's cabinet on starting a new airline, involving a group of...