Sunair to receive $2.08m Government loan for aircraft and debt refinancing

 

Bay of Plenty airline Sunair will receive a $2.08 million Government loan to help fund new aircraft, maintain its fleet and refinance debt.

Regional Development Minister Shane Jones and Associate Transport Minister James Meager announced the funding today.

Their media release said the investment would help secure regional air services across the upper North Island.

The loan, through the Government’s Regional Infrastructure Fund, could be used to acquire two larger aircraft, essential maintenance work and to refinance debt.

Jones said Sunair played an important role in connecting regional communities.

“Airlines such as Sunair are a critical part of the economic and social fabric of our regions,” he said.

He said regional air services helped businesses grow, improved access to health and education services, supported tourism and strengthened community resilience.

The proposed addition of larger aircraft would increase passenger capacity and operational flexibility, and reduce the airline’s reliance on its current fleet of six-seat planes.

Tauranga-headquartered Sunair operates flights throughout the upper North Island, serving destinations across Northland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Coromandel, Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay. Many of its routes are not served by other airlines.

Meager said the funding would help preserve regional connections that might not be commercially viable for larger operators.

“For the communities and businesses in towns like Wairoa, Whitianga or Whakatāne, having access to Sunair services can be a vital lifeline.”

The loan forms part of a $30 million regional air connectivity package established in 2025 to support vulnerable regional aviation services.

Other regional carriers supported through the programme included Air Chathams, Sounds Air, Island Air, Golden Bay Air and Stewart Island Flights.

The funding comes less than a year after Sunair was cleared to resume flying after being grounded for more than four months.

The Civil Aviation Authority restored the airline’s certification in November after concerns about aircraft maintenance and safety led to a 10-day suspension that was extended.

Sunair owner Dan Power said he was “pleased” to have the application for RIF funding approved.

“This will allow us to capitalise the business sufficiently to continue to service the regions of Bay of Plenty, Eastland, Waikato, Coromandel and Northland.”

Power said cost pressures since Covid and the “sluggish” economy had made it challenging to offer affordable air transport.

“The availability of this funding shows a commitment by the coalition Government to support regional New Zealand with the connectivity required for regional growth.”

He said the funds would be allocated to aircraft fleet upgrades, enabling increased all-weather capability and reliability.

“Sunair has offered regional air transport around the upper North Island for 35 years, and looks forward to continuing.”

Source: Bay of Plenty Times

Sunair adds Ardmore to network again

 

Sunair is excited to introduce a new flight service between Great Barrier Island and Ardmore, starting 4th November.

Flights will operate three days a week: Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

Our new service provides a convenient way to travel between Great Barrier Island and Ardmore, with connections to the Auckland region.

New Schedule for Whakatāne

 

Air Chathams has released a new schedule for its Auckland to Whakatāne service. Currently only 6 flights a week are being offered, with a mix of morning and afternoon departures, Sun-Fri. 

The new schedule still sees 6 flights a week, however weekday flights will now operate in the middle of the day (in between morning and afternoon Whanganui flights)

Air Chathams released the following email:

Thanks once again for being an Air Chathams passenger and helping us keep regional New Zealand connected.

We wanted to quickly update you on changes to our Whakatāne – Auckland route from 21 September 2026.

New Whakatāne schedule from 21 September 2026

The changes mainly affect flights Monday – Friday. The new standard schedule will be:

From Whakatāne

Monday – Friday: flight departs 1:15pm

Saturday: no flights

Sunday: flight departs 5pm (changing to 4.45pm from January 2027)

From Auckland

Monday – Friday: flight departs at 12:00pm

Saturday: no flights

Sunday: flight departs at 3.45pm (changing to 3.30pm from January 2027)

As always, our website is the best place to find flight times for a particular date.

Why you’re seeing these changes

Alongside several other factors, rising fuel costs continue to impact our operations. These changes will help us operate more efficiently, strengthen the long-term sustainability of the airline, and put us in a better place to serve our destinations.

We know that any schedule change will have an impact on people. If our service is important to you, you can help keep it sustainable by letting your local council know. Regional aviation is a partnership between local and central government and airlines like ours. If you’d like to see your air connections grow, tell your local representatives why they matter to you!

From Whakatāne to… anywhere!

Don’t forget that thanks to our new interline agreement with Air New Zealand, flights from Whakatāne can now connect to anywhere in the Air New Zealand domestic network with one check-in and one bag drop. Please use the Air New Zealand website to book a flight that has a final destination beyond Auckland.

Thanks again for flying Air Chathams. Your support means everything to our team.

When WHK upgraded to the Saab and we dropped to two flights a day at awkward times, it started to make things difficult for the loyal business/commuter customers. A few years back when Air Chathams were flying the Metroliner on a business/commuter friendly schedule, it could be hard to even get a seat on the first flight out, last flight in. With only one flight a day now, the largest users of the WHK airlink, the business community, are now having to fly out of ROT or TRG. - LF   

Takaka's First Air Service - Northwest Airlines

  

During World War II, Puramahoi Field near Takaka in Golden Bay was developed as an emergency grass runway for RNZAF aircraft, and in 1950 John Reid established the first regular service in and out of Golden Bay as Northwest Airlines.

In mid-January 1950 newspaper coverage reported that A new private company, North-west Airlines Ltd., will shortly begin a daily passenger and freight service between Takaka and Nelson. A Miles Gemini, a twin-engined aircraft, has been purchased in England and the founder of the company, Mr J. W. Reid, will fly it out to New Zealand. Mr Reid resigned last week from the position of instructor to the Nelson Aero Club. A licence for the service was approved by the Labour Government at its last Cabinet meeting. The distance from Nelson to Takaka by air is 40 miles and the Gemini’s flying time for the journey will be 18 minutes. It will take 15 minutes to travel from the city to Nelson airport and another 15 mintues by road from the Takaka aerodrome to the township. The 72-mile road journey from Nelson to Takaka takes about two and a half hours, the road across Takaka hill reaching an altitude of 2595 feet. It involves a. climb of 9½ miles on one side and 5½ on the other. Takaka is so isolated that a number of residents have never travelled even as far as Nelson.

Subsequently John Reid went to England  with the thought of flying the Miles Gemini back to New Zealand but due to unrest in Indonesia it was shipped to New Zealand arriving on the 1st of October 1950. Meawhile, Miles M65 Gemini 1A ZK-AUA (c/n 6300) was registered to Northwest Airlines Ltd on the 24th of July 1950. On Sunday the 15th of October 1950 the Gemini paid its first visit to Takaka to promote the upcoming service. 

The service began on the 7th of November 1950. The day before it was reported that a twice-daily return Takaka-Nelson air feeder service will start regular flights tomorrow with a four-seater Gemini aircraft. Mr J. W. Reid, former instructor of the Nelson Aero Club, is the initiator of the service, which will connect with NAC planes in and out of Nelson. The flying time is about 25 minutes, compared with three hours’ land travel time by way of Takaka Hill.

Northwest Airlines' Miles Gemini ZK-AUA at Nelson. Photo John Reid

Northwest Airlines flew Monday to Saturday, with flights being offered from Nelson departing at 7.00am, 12 noon and 5.00pm for the 30 minute flight to Takaka. The return flights departed Takaka at 8.05am, 1.05pm and 6.05pm. 

Northwest Airlines advertising taken from Graeme McConnell's chapter on Northwest Airlines in Taking Off - Pioneering Small Airlines of New Zealand 1945-1970 

Even as the service began there were issues with the Takaka aerodrome becoming water-logged after rain. Despite representations to Government no funding was made available for the drainage works. When needed Arthur Bradshaw's Percival Proctor V, ZK-AVW, was used as a backup aircraft. 

The back-up aeroplane,  Arthur Bradshaw's Percival Proctor V, ZK-AVW. Photo : Des White

The autumn and winter of 1951 proved to be very wet and for 74 days during these months the airfield was waterlogged meaning people had to transported by road. Graeme McConnell's definitive piece on Northwest Airlines, Above the Marble Martin in the Waugh-Gavin-Layne-McConnell book Taking Off - Pioneering Small Airlines of New Zealand 1945-1970 recounts the end of the airline... During the period 9-14 July only one Takaka-Nelson flight was possible, and this was without passengers because of the waterlogged state of the airfield. On Monday 16 July the airfield was only able to be used in the morning when the surface was frozen and this flight turned out to be the last scheduled service flown by the airline.

On 25 July it was announced that the service was being cancelled for a month on account of the condition of the Takaka airfield. The last charter flight was from Nelson to Wellington and return on 3 August 1951 and on 8 October, the public were notified that Northwest Airlines had formally ceased operations. Northwest Airlines figures show - Hours flown 438 (all incident free), Flights made 640, Passengers carried 1991. Freight carried 28301lbs (including newspapers carried on contract). A load factor of 74%. 

Meanwhile, in September 1951, the aircraft had been advertised as being for sale - Twin engined Miles Gemini four seat aircraft complete with Radio and with 12 months certificate of airworthiness for sale by company purchasing larger aircraft. Price £3,150. NORTH-WEST AIRLINES, 22 Victoria Road, Nelson. Phone 1831S Nelson. The Gemini was subsequently sold to the Nelson Aero Club on the 5th of October 1951 who used it until 1954. In May of that year it was sold to Aucklander L S McGuire who traded as Mac's Air Charter. On the 17th of July 1956 the Evening Post reported, The two occupants of a Miles Gemini two-engined aircraft walked out unhurt when it crashed between two houses at Onerahi (Whangārei) shortly after noon today. The two men were the owner-pilot, Mr. L. St. J. McGuire, and Father Cullen, both of Auckland. The plane had made a normal landing but failed to respond to braking at the end of the runway. Mr. McGuire attempted to take off again, but a cross wind caught the plane and tossed it between two houses. The aircraft finished upside down with its wings torn off, The plane was bound from Auckland to Kaikohe, but was landing at Onerahi to set down the passenger. Mrs. I. Kennedy was at home in one of the two houses when the accident oceurred. She received a severe fright but was unhurt. The aircraft was subsequently written off. 

On the 9th of October 1951 the Marlborough Express reported that The air service between Nelson and Takaka is to be discontinued. North-Sest Airlines announced yesterday that it had decided to cease operations because a proposed runway on the Takaka airfield cannot be constructed owing to the high: cost. The price for a 300-yard strip at each end of the airfield would be £12,000. An Air Department official told the company that had the job required about £5000 it could probably have been undertaken.

John Reid ultimately moved to helicopters  and was a pioneer in the New Zealand helicopter industry, for many years from the early 1960s managing Helicopters (NZ).

Graeme McConnell has written the definitive history of John Reid's Northwest Airlines and this can be found in "Taking Off - Pioneering Small Airlines of New Zealand 1945-1970" by Richard Waugh, Bruce Gavin, Peter Layne and Graeme McConnell

Originair reintroduces Blenheim - Wellington flights

 

Originair has reintroduced flights between Blenheim and Wellington for a seasonal period. Starting 15th December, and running through until the 15th January, flights will operate every day except Saturdays, with up to two daily flights scheduled. Flights will be operated by Originair's British Aerospace Jetstream aircraft. 

One might remember that Originair originally offered flights between Blenheim and Wellington back when they started their flights from Marlborough to Palmerston North and Christchurch. However these flights were quietly dropped from the schedule not long afterwards. 

Air New Zealand, Sounds Air and now Originair are flying the Capital to Marlborough route. 

Still no update from Originair or Government about its meetings regarding the future of the Wellington - Westport airlink. One wonders if this route is now finally in the history books…

Stewart Island Flights gets slice of RIF Funding

 

Stewart Island’s tiny airline is getting a slice of the Government’s $30 million Regional Infrastructure Fund, set up to help the country’s smaller operators.

South East Air, which owns the aircraft operated by Stewart Island Flights, will use the $640,000 loan to refurbish and return a plane to service, increasing the airline’s fleet from four to five aircraft.

Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson announced the funding, saying the extra aircraft would help the airline meet peak-season demand and keep scheduled services running when maintenance work takes longer than expected.

The airline’s CEO Leon Bax welcomed the news.

“The additional aircraft will give us better resilience across our schedule, particularly when other aircraft are undergoing planned maintenance.

“It will also provide us with additional capacity to respond to the strong demand we have seen post Covid."

The airline operates scheduled flights between Oban and Invercargill, along with charter and sightseeing services.

The refurbished plane is a Britten Norman Islander, which has been non-operational for some time. It will be the third aircraft of its type in the airline’s fleet. It also operates a Piper Cherokee Six and a Cessna 185.

Patterson added that the loan will help island residents access healthcare services and education, boost response times in an emergency, and help drive Stewart Island’s tourism, trade and general business activity.

It is one of several regional airlines receiving support through the fund.

Air Chathams received a $17.2 million loan, while Sounds Air got $4.5m, Golden Bay Air $1.1m and Island Air $252,000. It operates flights between Tauranga and Mōtītī Island.

In 2023, Stewart Island Flights was named the “most loved” airline in the country.

Source: Stuff.co.nz

Saab 340 landing incident triggers investigation

An investigation is underway after an overloaded Saab 340B wet-leased to Lulutai Airlines “experienced difficulty” while landing at Vava’u Airport (VAV) last week.

According to a report in Tonga’s Kaniva News, which cites “a reliable source,” an airport worker loaded additional undocumented baggage onto the aircraft at Tongatapu (TBU), which the flight crew was unaware of.

After landing, the pilot ordered the aircraft to be reweighed, revealing a “significant discrepancy” and sparking an investigation. The report did not say what event or events occurred during the landing. However, Aero South Pacific understands a preliminary report will be released as soon as next week.

Air Chathams presently has two Saab 340s at Lulutai Airlines. The first, ZK-KRA (msn 340A-065), has been in Tonga since August 10, 2026, and regularly flies between Tongatapu and Vava’u.

The second, ZK-CIY, arrived on August 26 and is set to operate the same route. At the time of publication, both aircraft remain in Tonga, although ZK-CIY has not operated since August 28.

Unclear whether landing damaged aircraft

It is unclear which aircraft was involved in the incident and whether it sustained any damage during the landing. However, Air Chathams has an established history of either wet-leasing or damp-leasing aircraft to Lulutai Airlines, which has been without its own Saab 340 since it was involved in a runway excursion in late 2023 and never returned to service.

There is no suggestion that any Air Chathams employees onboard the flight were aware of the discrepancy between the actual baggage weight and the reported baggage weight.

Neither Tonga's Civil Aviation Office nor Lulutai Airlines responded to a request for comment. Air Chathams declined to comment, citing non-disclosure terms in its ACMI agreement.

However, Air Chathams CEO Duane Emeny confirmed to Kaniva News that an investigation was underway.

“There is an active investigation underway. We will not comment until that investigation is complete,” he said.

Source: Aero South Pacific 

- I see on FlightRadar that ZK-CIY is still in Vava’u and has not returned to Tongatapu. 

Article notes that the aircraft is a Saab 340B. However both ZK-CIY and ZK-KRA are both 340A models.

This leaves ZK-CIT and ZK-CIZ in New Zealand operating Air Chathams scheduled flights to Whakatane and Whanganui. I did get notification today that Air Chathams has rescheduled its once daily AKL-WHKs to now be operated in the middle of the day, instead of the now usual mix of am and pm departures. 

- LF