Air Chathams to withdraw from Norfolk Island...

 

Sad news from the latest issue of Chatters...

Air Chathams has officially announced that it will not be extending its flight service to Norfolk Island past April 2025. After this date any flights to Norfolk Island will operate on a charter basis only, working directly with tour companies wanting to fly groups over peak travel periods for predominately the leisure market. As with so many challenges in aviation, since the pandemic, rebuilding passenger numbers on the Norfolk Island route has proven difficult, as travel costs and operational expenses have increased significantly. Adding to these challenges is Air Chathams’ turboprop aircraft not being able to match the lower operating costs of jet aircraft that serve other nearby South Pacific destinations, preventing the airline from discounting airfares further to boost demand without negatively impacting route sustainability to Norfolk Island.