Air Niugini
Thursday February 18th 2021
Air Niugini is upgrading selected flights to Gurney Airport, Alotau, Milne Bay Province to larger Boeing 737 aircraft.
The first ever Boeing 737 service will touch down in Gurney at 11. 20am on Friday February 26th , 2021.
Thereafter, the B737 aircraft will become a regular sight at Gurney Airport, with three weekly services from March 28th , on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays.
Fokker jet aircraft will continue to service Alotau on all other days of the week.
Chief Executive Officer, Mr Bruce Alabaster, said that using the B737 to Alotau would allow the Fokker jet aircraft that currently service the route to be used to increase capacity elsewhere.
“Alotau is an important economic hub for Milne Bay Province, ” he said.
“The Boeing 737 will carry up to 144 passengers per flight (16 Business and 128 Economy) compared to 101 seats in the Fokker 100.
“This will greatly assist in meeting demand whilst offering the fastest, smoothest, and most comfortable flights for our customers.
“Once the pandemic is over and overseas tourists return, the Boeing 737 will be a popular choice for travellers to Milne Bay.”
Mr Alabaster continued: “The Boeing 737 will also carry more freight than the Fokker aircraft currently used, which will assist with uplifting agricultural and marine produce from Milne Bay to Port Moresby and overseas markets.
“We are delighted to be able to provide the greater capacity and reliability of services that our customers deserve”.
Elsewhere, Air Niugini already operates daily Boeing 737 services to Mount Hagen.
Air Niugini continues to operate with strict health and safety measures in place, including temperature testing of all passengers and providing face masks and hand sanitisers, to ensure air travel is safe.