Tahiti airport strike grounds flights
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Air Tahiti Nui has postponed all flights to and from Papeete, Tahiti, due to a strike by government employees at Faa’a International Airport, the main gateway to French Polynesia.
The strike, by customs officers and emergency fire crews, has prevented the operation of all wide-bodied jet aircraft to and from Papeete, and left more than 3600 passengers stranded in Tahiti, Australia, New Zealand, the USA and France. Employees of Air Tahiti Nui are not involved in the strike.
With no indication of when industrial action might end, Air Tahiti Nui is unable to advise when flights to Papeete will resume.
The airline’s Sunday service from Auckland to Papeete was cancelled, affecting passengers including a number connecting from Australia.
The next service from Australia to Papeete via Auckland is still scheduled to operate this Thursday, 17 June. A decision will be made closer to Thursday on whether this flight will operate.
Air Tahiti Nui is making every effort to contact travellers booked to fly to Tahiti as well as travel agents and wholesalers, in order to minimise disruption to passengers.
For information updates, passengers are advised to contact their travel agents, visit www.airtahitinui.com.au or call Air Tahiti Nui reservations in Sydney on 1300 732 415, between 9.00am and 5.00pm on weekdays.
Please note that due to the expected high levels of calls, there may be considerable waiting times for passengers phoning the airline.
For passengers affected by the dispute, Air Tahiti Nui will waive all rebooking fees and cancellation fees. Once the strike ends, Air Tahiti Nui will rebook passengers on other flights, as soon as possible.
Air Tahiti Nui regrets the inconvenience caused by this dispute.
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