Friday June 6th has been set as the launch date for Fiji Link, the new brand for Fiji Airways’ subsidiary Pacific Sun. June 6 is also the date for the arrival of the domestic airline’s brand new 68-seater ATR 72-600 aircraft from France.

Announcing the date, Fiji Airways Group Managing Director and CEO Stefan Pichler said June 6th will mark an important chapter for the national carrier and its subsidiary.

“Next Friday will see the birth of Fiji Link and on that day, we will also welcome its new flagship aircraft – the ATR 72-600 – in Suva”, he said.

The delivery schedule has been completed and the Pacific Sun’s delivery team are at the ATR facility in Toulouse to begin a long track home for the turbo-prop aircraft. It will make six stops en route to Fiji, finally touching down in Nausori airport at 11am on Friday June 6th.

Promotional campaigns to raise awareness are on-going via national radio and the Fiji Airways Facebook page, with live radio broadcasts planned for the aircraft arrival from Nausori airport and from Suva city. The formal launch function will be held on Friday evening with a gala event at Suva’s Grand Pacific Hotel.

Mr. Pichler stated: “As we announced last November, the new brand for Pacific Sun will be an extension of the Fiji Airways brand. The Fiji Link aircraft will have a distinct, yet part-of-the-family look with the Fiji Airways fleet, and therefore retains prominent brand elements in its livery and design. This includes the name “FIJI” featuring prominently on the belly on the aircraft.”

“We are confident that will resonate well at home and in the regions where ‘Fiji Link’ aircraft will fly. “There’s a great deal of excitement among our teams at both Pacific Sun and Fiji Airways. The new ATR 72-600 is important to our Five Year Master Plan, as it will help us grow our network in Fiji and in the South Pacific, like the start of direct Suva-Apia flights starting mid-June.”
Pilot training in readiness for the new aircraft has progressed well, he added.
 
“Beyond this new aircraft, there is a complete redesign of Pacific Sun operations and network as it becomes Fiji Link. Connectivity with Fiji Airways’ international schedules will be enhanced to offer customers seamless connections to the North and other island destinations. The airline is also tracking extremely well with its On-Time Performance (OTP) every month, and this is expected to remain as two further new aircraft join the Fiji Link fleet later this year.”

Fiji Airways will shortly announce further enhancements for domestic and regional travel, including new uniforms and a Business Class product on the ATR 72-600. The airline’s two existing ATR 42-500s will exit the fleet as another new ATR 72-600 and ATR 42-600 series enter. An announcement on the rebranding of the Twin Otter fleet will be made at later stage.