New routes to the US as Pacific island airline expands horizons

Amid a flurry of recent airline announcements, Fiji Airways is one of those on the move. It starts flying between Nadi and Dallas-Fort Worth in the US from mid-December.

Another week, another new flight option and if you get the impression the world’s airlines are expanding their horizons non-stop, you’re not wrong. And the main driver is (unsurprisingly) profitability.

Fiji Airways is expanding its destinations.Credit:

Spurred on, at least in part, by longer-range aircraft (there’s an intricacy of extra factors involved), airlines are out to capture demand, sending their fleets to new destinations.

While that might mean the cancellation of some routes as planes are deployed to where the demand is – Qantas is suspending a service between Australia and Shanghai, for instance, as the route wasn’t getting enough bums on seats – the result is more choice for travellers.

A prime example? You may not be able to fly with Qantas at the minute, but Chinese operator Juneyao Airlines starts flying Melbourne-Shanghai on December 20. Qantas will monitor the route for any opportune time to recommence.

Air transport consultant Keith Tonkin says of the 2025 skies: “There’s fierce competition, so more change to come.”

Business class in the Juneyao Air 787 Dreamliner.Credit:

Tonkin says Fiji Airports has a strategy to position the country as a hub connecting the Pacific with the US. Fiji Airways, he says, sees the US as a lucrative market.

The airline will become a full member of Oneworld in early 2025, and will take on the loyalty scheme of American Airlines, AAdvantage.

Fiji Airways will also fly between Cairns and Nadi from April 10, providing more connections between Queensland and the US via the Pacific. The airline has also increased its frequency between Adelaide and Fiji.

Tonkin’s company, Aviation Projects, is working with Fiji Airports on its plan to upgrade in line with these ambitions.

Fiji Airways’ lounge buffet.Credit:

“They’re bursting at the seams,” Tonkin says. “They’ve got a whole bunch of capital works that they’re planning to deliver over the next little while to try and accommodate the increased capacity that’s being delivered into their airport.”

Fiji Airports is installing six new passenger-boarding aero bridges at Nadi International Airport as part of ongoing infrastructure upgrades, particularly with the aim of accommodating large aircraft such as the Airbus A350, of which Fiji Airways now has three.

Meanwhile, Etihad has announced 10 new routes from its Abu Dhabi home for 2025, including between Algiers, Algeria, and Tunis, Tunisia.

And Japan Airlines has announced a new code-share arrangement with India’s fast-growing regional airline, the budget IndiGo, which also has a code-share partnership with Qantas.