Fiji Airways, Fiji’s national airline, has announced plans to commence twice weekly direct services to Singapore. The flights to Singapore’s Changi Airport will operate from Nadi International Airport on Tuesdays and Fridays from April 5, 2016, with flights times to suit onward connections to India and South East Asia.

The new flight will be the first direct offering between Singapore and the South Pacific Islands and will be operated using a 273-seat Airbus A330 configured with a two-class arrangement. The flight time of ten hours will save travellers at least three hours compared to current flight options which require a transfer stop in Australia or New Zealand.

The new service will provide a convenient connection option via Singapore for travellers seeking to visit the tropical island paradise from Europe, South Asia and Southeast Asia and alongside Fiji will provide onward links to other exotic Pacific Islands such as Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu through Fiji Airways’ regional network.

“We will be flying direct to a destination considered as Asia’s leading hub,” said Andre Viljoen, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Fiji Airways. “In addition, most onwards flights to key cities in India, Indonesia and Malaysia are under four hours, which adds to the appeal of flying through Singapore. With this, we’re making good on our promise of taking Fijians to the world.”

Singapore is already among their top destinations within Southeast Asia for Fijian travellers and the existing schedule is likely to be expanded over time to meet increasing demand. This initial offering is Fiji Airways making a cautious step into this new marketplace and Changi is already working witht he airline and partners to grow the new service.

“We are excited about the growth potential of Fiji Airways at Changi Airport, and will work closely with the airline as well as other tourism and travel partners to maximise growth opportunities,” said Lee Seow Hiang, Chief Executive Officer, Changi Airport Group.

“This is a significant milestone for Changi Airport, with Fiji Airways’ new service bridging new direct links between Singapore and the South Pacific Islands,” he added.

Due to its geographic position, Australia (42.7 per cent share) and New Zealand (19.5 per cent share) are the largest origin and destination markets for international travel to and from Fiji, accounting for over one million two-way passengers in 2014. However, Sabre O&D demand data shows that travellers flew to the Pacific Island nation from almost 200 other countries last year, with China, Hong Kong, Canada, South Korea, Japan, the United Kingdom and India the largest source markets from outside the Pacific.