Nauru Airlines in standoff with Asia Pacific Airlines over new ops

Nauru Airlines wants to extend its cargo operations for the Republic of Nauru after securing financing for its first 737-800SF, but Asia Pacific Airlines has objected to the carrier expanding operations to and from the United States. [caption id="attachment_57136381" align="alignright" width="300"] Nauru Airlines will have six 737s in its fleet. (Photo/Nauru Airlines)[/caption] The airline intends to deliver mail and essential cargo between Nauru and Guam, with an anticipated start by the third quarter. It wants to operate two or three cargo flights each week between Guam and Nauru, as well as one passenger trip, and has plans to eventually offer flights to Honolulu from the Marshall Islands and Kiribati. Nauru Airlines looks to up regional profile Nauru Airlines will register the 737-800SF with the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority — like all its other aircraft — according to an application the carrier filed with the U.S. Department of Transportation on May 11 for an exemption and foreign air carrier permit. DOT awarded a foreign air carrier permit to Nauru Airlines in February 2017, but, according to the carrier in its DOT application, due to the pandemic and other reasons, it was unable to begin operations before the permit’s five-year expiration date. Nauru Airlines emphasized its importance to the airfreight community in its application — especially as the Federal Aviation Administration grounded Asia Pacific Airlines (APA) flights from February through April. The FAA issued the emergency suspension saying APA had failed to show that its two instructors in charge of pilot proficiency checks were properly trained and qualified. With APA grounded, the Marshall Islands declared a state of emergency due to stranded vital cargo, including medicine, which was ultimately transported by United Airlines with a chartered Nauru Airlines B737 freighter. “Granting this permit would be of immense benefit to the central Pacific states as it would help United Airlines move the cargo and mail that builds up in Guam when Asia Pacific Airlines is not flying,” Nauru Airlines claimed in its DOT application. “Nauru has operated several charters to move the mail/cargo backlog in recent weeks. This required approval of each flight. Granting this permit would obviate the need for such approvals in the future and replace it with the blanket approval that the requested permit would provide. “When APA was grounded in February 2023, the delivery of mail and essential cargo, such as medical supplies, from Guam and Honolulu to the central Pacific states created a crisis which led at least one state to declare a state of emergency,” the application reads. Asia Pacific Airlines objects After being mentioned in Nauru Airlines’ DOT application, Guam-headquartered APA submitted an objection to the application on May 25, claiming it is “incomplete” and calling it “an attempt by a foreign carrier to acquire blanket fifth-freedom authority to carry U.S. government mail and cargo in markets where lift is readily available by U.S. commercial carriers like Asia Pacific Airlines.” APA asserts that, when Nauru Airlines operated flights earlier this year, it did not have authorization to carry U.S. mail “even in an emergency.” The objection also states that “Nauru Airlines is wholly foreign-government owned, raising additional concerns over a foreign government overseeing U.S. mail carriage to Pacific islands, which have critical U.S. national security and military assets.” Operating Australia’s first 737-800SF The 737-800SF (33003, ex- Sriwijaya Air ) will be the first AEI 737-800 conversion to begin operating under Australian registration. With its addition, Nauru Airlines will own and operate six aircraft: one 737-800SF, two 737-300SFs, two 737-300s and one 737-700. A version of this story appeared in Air Cargo Next’s sister publication, Cargo Facts . Join Air Cargo Next for the upcoming webinar , “What’s new in digital cargo systems,” on Tuesday, June 13, at 11 a.m. ET. F or more information on the webinar and to register , click here.

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