Samoa’s airlines, Talofa Airways and Samoa Airways may have poured cold water on government plans to expand their flight routes to other Pacific islands such as Fiji, Tuvalu, Niue, and the Cook Islands.
Minister of Civil Aviation, Olo Fiti Va’ai and Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa had said during the opening of the $25 million Regional Terminal last month this would happen raising hopes for broader connectivity in the Pacific region.
However, Talofa Airways Director, Toleafoa Jeffrey Hunter said the airline has not considered expanding its services to these destinations.
Toleafoa emphasized that the airline currently focuses on the routes with the highest demand, particularly between Samoa and American Samoa, as well as flights to Tonga.
“We mainly fly to American Samoa because there are a lot of people travelling between the two countries so there are a lot of flights going to Pago daily, and then we have flights to Tonga as well,” he explained.
Talofa Airways currently only fly in and out of Faleolo Airport.
Similarly, the Chief Executive Officer of Samoa Airways, Fauo’o Fatu Tielu, expressed doubts about the viability of flights to the aforementioned Pacific islands.
Fauo’o told the Samoa Observer that there was simply “not enough demand” to justify regular air services to those destinations.
Fauo’o also noted that Samoa Airways had previously operated flights to Tonga and Niue, but both routes were discontinued due to low passenger numbers.
There are reports that Talofa Airways and Samoa Airways are expected to begin operations out of the new $25 million tala Regional Terminal at Faleolo Airport starting December 2.