Air Tahiti Nui facts for kids
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| Founded | 31 October 1996 |
|---|---|
| Commenced operations | 20 November 1998 |
| Hubs | Faa'a International Airport |
| Frequent-flyer program | Club Tiare |
| Fleet size | 4 |
| Destinations | 5 |
| Headquarters | Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia, France |
| Key people | Michel Monvoisin (CEO) |
Air Tahiti Nui is the main airline of French Polynesia, a group of islands that are part of France. Its main office is in Papeete, and its daily operations are handled in Faaa, both on the island of Tahiti. The airline flies long distances from its home base at Faa'a International Airport. It uses a fleet of four Boeing 787 Dreamliner airplanes.
Contents
History of Air Tahiti Nui
Air Tahiti Nui was started on October 31, 1996. It began flying on November 20, 1998. This was the first airline in French Polynesia to fly long international routes. It was created to help bring more tourists to the islands. The government of French Polynesia owns most of the airline (84.4%).
After several years of losing money, Air Tahiti Nui faced financial trouble in 2011. However, the company started making a profit again in 2015.
In May 2015, Air Tahiti Nui decided to replace all its airplanes. At that time, they had five Airbus A340-300 aircraft. They chose to replace them with four newer Boeing 787-9 airplanes. These new planes arrived in 2018 and 2019. Air Tahiti Nui stopped using its A340 planes in September 2019.
In April 2018, before getting its new Boeing 787-9 planes, Air Tahiti Nui updated its logo and writing style. The new logo was designed with help from a Polynesian artist named Alexander Lee. The updated logo shows a tiare flower, which has always been the airline's symbol. Inside the flower, you can see the side profile of a vahine (which means woman in Tahitian). This design reminds people of Tahiti's beautiful women and flowers.
In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, there were rules about international flights. Because of this, Air Tahiti Nui flew a special flight. A Boeing 787-9 flew nonstop from Faa'a International Airport in Papeete to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris. This flight skipped its usual stop in Los Angeles International Airport. It traveled about 15,715 kilometers (9,765 miles) and took 15 hours and 45 minutes. This was known as the world's longest domestic flight at the time. Later, another airline, French Bee, flew an even longer flight from Papeete to Paris in May 2020.
Where Air Tahiti Nui Flies
Air Tahiti Nui has special agreements with other airlines. These are called codeshare agreements. This means they can sell tickets on each other's flights.
Air Tahiti Nui works with these airlines:
The airline also works with SNCF, which is the national train company in France.
Air Tahiti Nui's Airplanes
Current Fleet
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As of November 2021, Air Tahiti Nui has these airplanes:
| Aircraft | In service |
Orders | Passengers | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Y+ | Y | Total | ||||
| Boeing 787-9 | 4 | — | 30 | 32 | 232 | 294 | |
| Total | 4 | — | |||||
Former Airplanes
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Air Tahiti Nui used to operate these airplanes:
| Aircraft | Total | Introduced | Retired | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A340-200 | 1 | 1998 | 2003 | |
| Airbus A340-300 | 5 | 2001 | 2019 |
Airplane Colors and Design
The design on Air Tahiti Nui's airplanes has always featured different shades of blue. These colors represent the ocean, lagoons, and sky of Tahiti. The top part of the plane is blue, and the bottom part, along with the engines, is white. The flag of French Polynesia is placed near the front of the plane. The plane's name is written below the flag. Red and white stripes, inspired by the flag, also run along the lower part of the blue section.
The airline's logo, a tiare flower, is painted on the tail of the plane. Around the flower, there are circular waves of light and dark blue, like ripples in water.
When the new Boeing 787-9 planes arrived in October 2018, the design changed slightly. The new design includes patterns inspired by traditional Tahitian tattoos on the plane's body. The blue color became a darker shade. The airline's name on the front of the plane also got a new look. However, the tiare flower logo on the tail stayed mostly the same.
Air Tahiti Nui names its airplanes after different islands and atolls in French Polynesia. For example, some names are Bora Bora, Fakarava, Moorea, and Rangiroa. One special plane, a Boeing 787-9 called F-ONUI, is named after Tupaia. He was a famous Tahitian navigator from history.
Images for kids
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The Immeuble Tuarata, the daily operations office of Air Tahiti Nui in Faaa, was opened in 2018.
See also
In Spanish: Air Tahiti Nui para niños
