Big Changes, Cheaper

Air Fares In P-NG

Important changes in airline operations between Australia and Papua-New Guinea and within Papua- New Guinea, will take place this year. They will mean cheaper air travel to Territorians.

THE Australian Cabinet is shortly expected to decide to remove Qantas from its domestic routes within P-NG and hand them to Trans Australia Airlines, the Gov ernment-owned Australian internal airline.

It will also allow TAA and Ansett-ANA (TAA’s Australian rival) to compete against Qantas on the trunk route to the Territory, which hitherto has been a Qantas monopoly.

Australian domestic fare scales will operate on the main route and the NG internal routes, bringing fares down several pounds. The fare between Sydney and Port Moreby may be reduced by as much as £lO.

TAA and Ansett will operate DC6B’s on the Port Moresby run.

They can carry up to 85 passengers.

Some Months Yet Even when the Cabinet decision is announced, it should be many months before the new services are operating, and then the pattern may be different from the one that Cabinet first approves.

The present scheme is for TAA to take over Qantas’ assets in P-NG, including their terminal buildings.

Ansett will then be invited to take an interest in internal operations in NG by buying into Mandated Air lines (a Carpenter subsidiary) with whom Ansett was negotiating last year.

However, Ansett may not agree to buy into P-NG domestic services this way because of the great ex pense (which was made even higher recently with the purchase by MAL of four more DC3’s).

It may combine with MAL, using MAL’s Territory experience, and may attempt to get the Govern ment to allocate it a half share of Qantas P-NG installations, so that both it and TAA will use the same terminal buildings.

Ansett wants a share in the NG internal services because most of the traffic to and from the Territory ends or originates within the Terri tory, at centres other than Port Moresby. Rights to run to Port Moresby only would not give Ansett enough traffic while TAA were able to tap the internal traffic.

By the middle of March, Qantas hopes to be operating Electra turbo

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op aircraft on the route between rdney and Port Moresby.

Port Moresby already se-s one oi L ese aircraft each week on the new irdney to Hongkong flight which ills at Port Moresby.

French Position

The Tahitian roneoed news-sheet ehats in January quoted the Pre dent of the French Airline, TAI, [r Paul Bernard, as saying that e favoured renewal of official nation talks between Australia and tance “within a few months The talks broke down in December nd as a result aviation agreements etween Australia and France were erminated on December 31 ( PIM, anuary, and p. 129 this issue).

Mr. Bernard was quoted as saying hat following the breakdown, it ms possible that TEAL’S traffic ights in French Polynesia could be withdrawn (Qantas has an interest

N Teal). %T

A Noumea report says that TAI nil soon drop the Noumea-Auck and service as a retaliation measure, vhich would thus have the affect >f forcing TEAL out of Papeete. As Tom February the Auckland service s being run with a DC4 instead Df a DC6, but the DC4’s will not connect with the incoming Pans aircraft and NZ bound passengers will have to cool their heels in Noumea for about a week.

Pan American Airways announced in Sydney in February that begin ning from March 7 its trans-Pacific jet services would be increased from one a week to two a week. An additional Stratocruiser would also operate between Auckland and Nadi.