As Vanuatu prepares to reconnect to the rest of the world following the government announcement of border opening on 1st of July, there’s a lot of speculation about what this will really look like and how ready we will be. A vital part of this reconnecting for us as an island nation, is about our national airline Air Vanuatu. In this modern world, flying has become second nature for most of us. All our international students, labour mobility workers and business connections these days rely on international flights. So, the airline connections are critical to the country. Currently, the only other international airlines that have confirmed to fly into Vanuatu starting in July, are Air Fiji and Air Calin. So for at least a while, the responsibility for the majority of our flight reconnections sits firmly with Air Vanuatu.
The national airline announced its international flight schedules a month ago and today announced a sale for Vanuatu based travellers wanting to travel overseas also. Both actions give a clear sign that Air Vanuatu is supportive of the border opening and committed to making this a success. However, it’s important to realise that Air Vanuatu is not alone in making this happen; being a fully government owned entity, means there is a share of responsibility that lies with the government. The airline/government relationship influences many aspects including the all-important financing. Every airline, no matter where it is in the world, needs to operate with a robust financial plan and have access to financing, especially after the pandemic travel closures and the resulting decline in airline revenues globally. Financing is critical to a re-start. So, what’s happening with the financial viability of Air Vanuatu? We’d like to report that everything is firmly in place and there’s nothing to worry about. However, the reality is that the government has made assurances that it will stand by Air Vanuatu, the exact financial details related to this have not been released. The most senior people in the government finance teams and the airline’s CEO are still working out the finer details. The board of Air Vanuatu is made up of government leaders and their influence in ensuring that the necessary commitments are timely and relevant, is now crucial.
One area that has strongly influenced Air Vanuatu’s financials recently is the significant growth of the air cargo business. Air cargo can be anything from mail, private parcels, business essentials, computers, perishable food and much more. Because of COVID-19 related shipping delays, and changes to all the transport schedules generally, the national airline has stepped in and offered services to deliver more international cargo and a lot more domestic cargo across the islands also.
Credit: Air Vanuatu
