Tony Bailey

Air Tahiti Nui to fly Sydney-Papeete non-stop in 2005
Wednesday, 12 May 2004

Tahiti's expansive-minded air carrier Air Tahiti Nui will have an
added enticement for Australian holidaymakers to develop their love affair
with the South Pacific paradise of Tahiti and Her Islands next year - in
June 2005 it will begin the only direct non-stop air service between Sydney
and Papeete.


The airline, that already operates three weekly services between
Papeete and Auckland, will use a brand-new Airbus A340-300 for two weekly
flights to Sydney, offering First, Business and Economy class seating and
slashing up to three hours off flying time between Australia and Tahiti;
seats in all classes will have personal video screens, sound systems and
computer games.

At the same time Air Tahiti Nui will introduce three weekly non-stop
services between New York and Papeete, a service it says will both open new
opportunities for European holidaymakers to visit Tahiti, and reduce flying
time from major European centres.

The airline says the new Sydney and New York services will help
realise Tahiti's goal of attracting 300,000 tourists a year by 2007,
including the developing Mainland China market by way of the Sydney service.

(Last year Tahiti enjoyed the biggest increase in visitor numbers from
Australia of any of the South Pacific islands, a remarkable 40% on 2002.)







Source = Air Tahiti Nui