Solomon Islands national carrier, Solomon Airlines, has announced that it is leasing a 737-400 aircraft from Airworks of New Zealand to service its international routes starting this weekend.
The lease will last until the end of March while Solomon Airlines’ Airbus A320 undergoes maintenance work in the Philippines.
Solomon Airlines General Manager Operations and Commercial Services, Gus Kraus says the arrangement will put an end to disruptions in flight schedules faced by international passengers in recent weeks.
“The new lease will normalise the airlines international flight schedule and we can renew it should the maintenance work on the Airbus take longer.”
Over the past two weeks Solomon Airlines has relied on partner airlines, Our Airlines (Air Nauru) and Air Vanuatu to provide international flights after an agreement with Alliance Airlines fell through due to regulatory issues with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) of Australia.
“Although costly for Solomon Airlines this arrangement with Airworks is necessary so that we can continue to provide service to our passengers and the public at large.”
“I would like to thank our passengers for their understanding continued support through this trying time,” said Kraus.
Source: Press Release, Solomon Airlines