The Nadi International Airport is Fiji’s main international gateway, with more than 30 international flights scheduled each day. However, the recent unavailability of aviation fuel posed a challenge, forcing many major airlines, such as Qantas, Virgin Australia and Air New Zealand to seek alternative ways to refuel.
Fuel Supply Disruption
According to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Civil Aviation Viliame Gavoka, recent fuel shortage was caused by a supply-chain issue, in which jet fuel received from one of Fiji’s suppliers was unusable.. He mentioned that this affects the availability of Jet A-1 fuel that international airlines use to refuel in commercial flights from Fiji. Airlines might have to wait until the next shipment of fuel arrives to remedy this situation.
Previously, it was reported that the shortage of fuel was caused by fuel contamination, where there was excessive electrical charge in the fuel stock. It was unclear how this issue came about. However, Gavoka confirmed there was no fuel contamination; rather, the shortage was caused by an issue in the supply chain.
The Ministry also reported that current conditions are improving, and this issue will be resolved by the end of this month.
Adapting to Fuel Restrictions
Major airlines such as Qantas, Virgin Australia and Air New Zealand adopted several measures to cope with this issue. Qantas has used larger aircraft, such as the Airbus A330 for the Sydney-Nadi route as compared with the smaller Boeing 737, to avoid refuelling at Nadi. Virgin Australia has had to cancel two flights out of six that go from Australia to Fiji. Air New Zealand has also needed to bring its own fuel to address the shortage.
An additional 1.3 million litres of Jet A-1 fuel has also been made available in an effort to alleviate the shortage. Fuel supplies were prioritised for scheduled services, with non-scheduled flights advised to source fuel elsewhere to have enough for scheduled flights that need it. Some airlines, including Virgin Australia had confirmed that they stopped halfway in New Caledonia and Vanuatu to refuel on their way to Australia and Fiji.
What do you think the government and airlines can do to prevent this in the future? Let us know in the comments!
