Air Tahiti Nui

Air Tahiti Nui is the flag carrier of the French overseas collectivity of French Polynesia, with its head office and daily operations office in Faʼaʼā, Tahiti.<ref>"Contacter Template:Webarchive." Air Tahiti Nui. Retrieved on 2 February 2011. "Tahiti - Siège social Immeuble Dexter – Pont de L’Est – Papeete BP 1673 – 98713 Papeete – Tahiti."</ref> It operates long-haul flights from its home base at Faaʼa International Airport, with a fleet consisting of four Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.<ref name="FI">Flight International 27 March 2007.</ref>

History

Air Tahiti Nui was established on 31 October 1996 and commenced flight operations on 20 November 1998. It was the first international long-haul airline based in French Polynesia, which was formed to develop inbound tourism. The Government of French Polynesia is the major shareholder (84.4%) along with other local investors. Air Tahiti Nui had 782 employees around 2007.<ref name="FI"/>

After years running a deficit, Air Tahiti Nui faced possible bankruptcy in 2011. The President of French Polynesia, Oscar Temaru, called for all eligible workers in the territory help bail out the carrier by voluntarily paying a third of their income into a rescue fund. After four years of deficit, the company started making profits again in 2015.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In May 2015, Air Tahiti Nui announced its intention to replace its entire fleet, then consisting of five Airbus A340-300 aircraft. They would be replaced by four Boeing 787-9 aircraft, which would be delivered in 2018 and 2019.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="a340replacement">Template:Cite press release</ref> Air Tahiti Nui operated its last A340 service in September 2019.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The Immeuble Tuarata, the daily operations office of Air Tahiti Nui in Faaa, was inaugurated in 2018 by President Édouard Fritch, replacing the previous office in Papeete although the headquarters remained there.

In April 2018, in anticipation of its new fleet of Boeing 787-9 aircraft, Air Tahiti Nui launched its redesigned brandmark and updated typography. The redesigned logo is a joint collaboration between Future Brand and Polynesian contemporary artist Alexander Lee.<ref name="rebrand1">Template:Cite press release</ref> The re-drawn logo represents a tiare flower, the airline's emblem from the start of its history, depicted in a two-thirds view, with the profile of a Template:Transliteration (woman, in Tahitian) in its pistil, a nod to Tahiti's reputation for beautiful women and flowers in the South Seas.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In March 2020, during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and as an impact of restrictions by the United States on international flights, Air Tahiti Nui operated the world's longest domestic flight with a lightly loaded Boeing 787-9.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The aircraft flew nonstop from Faa'a International Airport serving Papeete to Charles de Gaulle Airport serving Paris, skipping the then-restricted intermediate stop at Los Angeles International Airport, and traversing a great-circle distance of Template:Convert between the two airports, flying continuously for 15 hours 45 minutes.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> The airline's flights between Papeete and Paris were later adjusted to make technical stops interchangeably between Pointe-à-Pitre and Vancouver International Airport.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Air Tahiti Nui's record was later eclipsed by French Bee in May 2020, which operated its own flight from Papeete to Paris, but to Orly Airport, covering a great-circle distance of Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref>

Destinations

Overview

As of January 2025, Air Tahiti Nui serves the following destinations:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Country or territory	City	Airport	Notes	Refs
Australia	Sydney	Sydney Airport	Template:Terminated	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
France	Paris	Charles de Gaulle Airport
French Polynesia	Papeete	Faa'a International Airport	Template:Airline hub
Japan	Osaka	Kansai International Airport	Template:Terminated	<ref name="AWM">Template:Cite web</ref>
	Tokyo	Narita International Airport
New Zealand	Auckland	Auckland Airport
United States	Los Angeles	Los Angeles International Airport
	New York City	John F. Kennedy International Airport	Template:Terminated	<ref name="AWM"/>
	Seattle	Seattle–Tacoma International Airport	Ends Template:Date	<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Codeshare agreements

Air Tahiti Nui has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:<ref name="CAPA Air Tahiti Nui profile">Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Div col

• Aircalin<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Air France
• Air New Zealand
• Alaska Airlines<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• American Airlines
• Air Rarotonga<ref>https://www.aviation24.be/airlines/air-tahiti-nui/air-tahiti-nui-and-air-rarotonga-enhance-pacific-travel-with-new-codeshare-partnership/</ref>
• Delta Air Lines
• Japan Airlines
• Korean Air
• LATAM Chile<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Qantas
• Vietnam AirlinesTemplate:Div col end

The airline also codeshares with the SNCF, the French national railway operator having also Interline agreements with

• Emirates<ref>https://www.emirates.com/us/english/travel-partners/ Template:Bare URL inline</ref>
• Hahn Air <ref>https://www.hahnair.com/en/partner-carriers Template:Bare URL inline</ref>
• WestJet<ref name="partners">Template:Cite web</ref>

Fleet

Current fleet

Air Tahiti Nui Boeing 787-9 during the 2019 Paris Air Show

Template:As of, Air Tahiti Nui operates an all-Boeing 787-9 fleet composed of the following aircraft:<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Air Tahiti Nui fleet

Aircraft	In service	Orders	Passengers				Notes
			J	W	Y	Total
Boeing 787-9	4	—	30	32	232	294<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Total	4	—

Former fleet

A former Air Tahiti Nui Airbus A340-300

Air Tahiti Nui formerly operated the following aircraft:

Air Tahiti Nui former fleet

Aircraft	Total	Introduced	Retired	Notes
Airbus A340-200	1	1998	2003
Airbus A340-300	5	2001	2019

Livery

Air Tahiti Nui's aircraft livery over its history included different shades of blue representing the ocean, lagoon and sky of Tahiti for the upper half of the aircraft, extending the length of its fuselage, with white for the lower half as well as the aircraft's engines. The flag of French Polynesia is placed toward the front of the aircraft, behind the cockpit windows, with the aircraft's given name written underneath it. The flag is also incorporated into the livery's design, with red and white stripes that extend for part of the fuselage's length underneath the blue color. A tiare flower, the airline's logo, is placed onto the aircraft's vertical stabilizer (tailfin), with circular waves of alternating light and dark blues emanating from the flower, resembling water ripples.

With the introduction of the airline's Boeing 787-9 aircraft in October 2018, the airline's new livery incorporated markings derived from traditional Tahitian tattoos to the fuselage, the blue color used for most of the livery was changed to a darker shade, and the airline's name written on the forward fuselage was changed to the airline's new wordmark.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, despite the airline's tiare flower logo undergoing a visual change during the airline's overall rebranding, the logo used on the aircraft's tailfin was largely unchanged from the previous version.<ref name="rebrand1"/>

A closeup of an Air Tahiti Nui aircraft's titling

Air Tahiti Nui's names for its aircraft are predominantly derived from various islands and atolls across French Polynesia, including Bora Bora, Fakarava, Mangareva, Moorea, Nuku Hiva, Rangiroa and Tetiaroa. An exception is F-ONUI, a Boeing 787-9 named after Tupaia, a historical Tahitian navigator.

References

Citations

Bibliography

• "RAPPORT D’OBSERVATIONS DEFINITIVES SEML AIR TAHITI NUI Exercices 2008 à 2011." (Archive) Chambre territoriale des comptes de Polynésie française. Template:In lang

External links

• Template:Official website