The world will soon have a new Boeing 787 Dreamliner operator. The name isn’t one of the biggest names in aviation but it the purchase of these planes will have a huge impact on connectivity to and from Papua New Guinea. The new Boeing 787 Dreamliner operator will be Papua’s flag carrier Air Niugini. Let’s find out more regarding the news and how Air Niugini’s fleet will change.
About Air Niugini’s Boeing 787 Order
Papua New Guinea’s flag carrier has placed with Boeing an order for 2 Boeing 787 Dreamliners. Specifically the airline has opted for the 787-8 variant.
This is the smallest variant of the aircraft type’s lineup, with the 9 and 10 being the biggest versions. This however is the perfect plane size for Air Niugini, as we’ll see later in the post.
The planes, once delivered will be based in the airline’s hub in Papua New Guinea’s capital Port Moresby.
Image by Boeing
Replacing Ageing Planes
The new Air Niugini Boeing 787-8s will not be used to expand the current fleet, rather they will be replacing some ageing jets. Currently the airline owns and operates only 2 wide body aircraft. These are 2 Boeing 767-300ER with registration:
- P2-PXV 23 and a half years old
- P2-PXW 31 and a half years old
Both these older jets where previously owned by other carriers, therefore weren’t fitted to specifications of Air Niugini. The airline could only refit them with their own interiors once they took over them in 2011 (P2-PXW) and 2010 (P2-PXV).
These new Boeing 787-8 that Air Niugini ordered will dramatically rejuvenate the airline’s fleet, allowing to offer a fresher more modern hard product.
Also the 787-8 offers an increased range compared to the 767-300ER. Air Niugini will be able to further help the economy of Papua New Guinea by possibly serving destinations that were simply out of range with the previous generation of wide bodies.
We’ll just have to wait and see what the interiors of these new planes will look like once they are delivered to Air Niugini.