PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (AP) — Papua New Guinea’s struggling flag carrier Air Niugini has signed a five-year passenger sharing agreement with its major competitor, Qantas Airways.
The code-share deal announced Sunday by Prime Minister Mekere Morauta means Air Niugini will not compete for passengers with the Australian giant from September.
“The code-share arrangement is necessary for the financial future of our national airline,” Morauta said. “It does mean more to Air Niugini than to Qantas.”
The airline’s revenue had lifted during a previous five-month code-share with Qantas, which ended in February, he said.
Air Niugini flies between Papua New Guinea and the Australian cities of Cairns, Brisbane and Sydney, as well as to Singapore, the Solomon Islands and the Philippines.
As part of the deal, Qantas insisted Air Niugini replace its aging Airbus aircraft with a Boeing 767.
The upgrade forced Air Niugini to borrow 24 million Australian dollars ($14 million), which Morauta said will be guaranteed by the Papua New Guinea government.
Morauta also unveiled plans to immediately restructure the Air Niugini board following the sudden resignation of the airline’s Australian chief executive last month.
Peter Roberts said he chose to leave his contract 15 months early because he felt he was not given enough control over the airline. He has denied he was forced to leave.
