Papua New Guinea’s PNG Air: fleet renewal to drive domestic growth and international resumption

Papua New Guinea regional airline PNG Air is aiming to increase its domestic market share and resume international services following the completion of a transformation project. PNG Air is in the process of renewing its fleet with new ATR 72-600s, resulting in operational improvements and enabling it to compete more effectively against its larger rival Air Niugini.

PNG Air, formerly known as Airlines PNG, completed a rebranding exercise in late 2015 coinciding with the delivery of its first ATR 72-600. PNG Air has since taken delivery of two more ATR 72-600s and plans to take another four aircraft by the end of 2017.

The airline has focused entirely on the domestic market since suspending services to Australia and implementing a restructuring in 2013. However, PNG Air plans to resume international operations by the end of 2016 with a new route to Jayapura in Indonesia.