Poly Air reacts to competition

23 August 2016, 12:00AM

Polynesian Airlines is ready to meet the challenges presented by its newest competitor, Talofa Airways, on the Pago market.

So assures Polynesian’s Chief Executive Officer, Seiuli Alvin Tuala, in a press statement issued yesterday.

 “We have been selling our sale fares of $380.00 tala Fagalii/Pago/Fagalii and USD150.00 Pago/Fagalii/Pago since the beginning of last week,” said Seiuli. 

“Our sale fares include taxes and surcharges and 20kgs free baggage allowance and are available for sale directly from our Sales Offices or through our Travel Agents.”

Asked whether he was concerned with the fact that Talofa Airways was promoting heavily the speed of its aircraft, Seiuli said this was not a major concern with Polynesian Airlines. 

“With our Twin Otter aircraft’s, it’s only a 30 minute plane ride to Pago from Fagali’i Airport and the majority of our people prefer to travel in a comfortable and bigger plane.” 

According to Seiuli, the Twin Otter aircraft types have been in operation on the Pago route for years starting from the late 1980s so the Pago market are very much used to this type of aircraft. 

“The Twin Otter aircraft is world renowed for its safety record and versatility and these STOL (short take-off and landing) type of aircraft are ideally suited for short runways like Fagalii Airport.” Seiuli added that he and his team have been working on a lot of areas to improve their Airline’s service to the travelling public. 

“We have different sale fares on offer between the two Samoas and we are working very hard to improve the reliability of our service with our aircraft fleet of three Twin Otters. In the airline industry, improving and maintaining service levels at a very high standard is always a work in progress for everyone and we are committed to providing this for our customers.”

“We welcome competition. Competition is good for everyone as it means cheaper fares for the travelling public and improved services from the airlines involved and this will only serve to benefit the economies of the two Samoas.”

23 August 2016, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

Upgrade to Premium

Subscribe to
Samoa Observer Online

Enjoy unlimited access to all our articles on any device + free trial to e-Edition. You can cancel anytime.

>