On-Time Performance at record 91% from April to December
Pacific Sun general manager Shaenaz Voss. Photo: SHALENDRA PRASAD.
Excellent operational performance from April 2012 has seen Pacific Sun, Fiji’s domestic airline, ended 2012 with industry leading figures in on-time arrivals, fleet reliability, and completion factor.
ON TIME PERFORMANCE
The airline reported 90%, 93%, 93%, 88% for on-time performance (OTP) for September, October, November and December respectively, pushing its year-to-date overall OTP performance (January 2012 to December 2012) to a record-high 89%.
From April to December, Pacific Sun’s OTP averaged 91%, despite disruptions to schedules caused by unscheduled engine changes to its ATR and disruptions as a result of Cyclone Evan in December.
(OTP is an airline industry standard metric which measures aircraft flight arrivals as being “on time” if they arrive at the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled arrival time shown in the carriers’ schedule. Most airlines world-wide regard OTP performance at or above 80% as exceptional).
DISPATCH READINESS
Pacific Sun’s Technical Dispatch Reliability (TDR) for September, October, November and December was 97.3%, 98.5%, 99.2% and 98.7% respectively,with an April 2012 – December 2012 average TDR performance of 99%.
(TDR is another world-wide airline performance metric that measures if an airline’s fleet is “maintenance ready” for push-back and not delayed by mechanical or other technical issues).
FLIGHTS COMPLETED
Pacific Sun has also maintained a 98% completion factor from April 2012 to December 2012. (Pacific Sun flights to / from Labasa in September and October 2012 were taken off the schedule due to factors beyond the airline’s control, and not counted in the above-mentioned metrics. Pacific Sun also stopped flights for almost two days due to Tropical Cyclone Evan in December and those cancelled flights are also excluded from these metrics).
OTTER UPGRADES
Upgrade to current fleet of DHC-6 Otter aircraft is continuing, with the second Twin Otter now in the final completion phase for installation of enhanced avionics equipment to complement new weather radar systems and GPS. Work on the third Twin Otter will begin soon.
LABASA AIRPORT
The airline welcomed the re-opening of the Labasa airport last October and has an on-going year-round special for domestic flights available via www.airpacific.com or through the airline’s Reservations Centres.
NEW PILOT HIRES
The airline remains committed to providing a clear career progression pathway to qualified local pilot to work for the national and domestic airline. Pacific Sun has just hired 5 pilots to fly its DH6 Twin Otter aircraft.
General Manager Shaenaz Voss also praised Pacific Sun staff for their hard work over the last year which resulted in the airline achieving the above-mentioned operational highlights, despite the challenges in 2012.
“2012 presented us with challenges obviously beyond our control, like floods, a cyclone, and the closure of the Labasa runway. Added to that were unanticipated engine changes on our ATR-42 aircraft. However our staff worked diligently to ensure disruptions to the travel plans of our customers were kept to a minimum as much as possible. We’re looking forward to another year of sustained excellent operational performance”
(PRESS RELEASE AUTHORIZED BY SHAENAZ VOSS, GENERAL MANAGER OF PACIFIC SUN)