Air Niugini is maintaining international flights as Papua New Guinea (PNG) toughens its entry rules. The airline continues to operate flights to Australia, Singapore, The Philippines, and Hong Kong. At the same time, getting into PNG is now much harder.

Papua New Guinea beefs up its entry requirements

PNG's Controller of the National Control Centre (NCC) for COVID-19, David Manning, has issued an updated direction for travelers heading to the country. The direction comes into effect today, Friday, July 2.

All inbound travelers must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and must produce evidence in the form of a vaccination certificate. Vaccinated or not, all inbound travelers to PNG will also have to quarantine at an approved facility for 21 days on arrival, at their own expense.

Mr Manning has revoked all previous approvals for home quarantine or shorter quarantine periods. To date, PNG has reported 17,098 cases of COVID-19 and 173 deaths.

Air Niugini keeps PNG connected

Despite the onerous entry requirements, PNG's national airline, Air Niugini, is keeping the country connected to the rest of the world. The airline is flying once a week to Sydney, six times a week to Brisbane, four times a week to Singapore, and twice a week to Hong Kong and Manila.

Air Niugini is using both a Boeing 767-300ER and 737-800 on its international services. The 767-300ER operates all of the Singapore (SIN) and Hong Kong (HKG) flights. The 737-800 operates the weekly flight to Sydney (SYD) and both flights to Manila (MAN).

Flights to Brisbane (BNE) are split between the 767 and 737. The airline's passenger flights to the popular North Queensland port of Cairns (CNS) are on pause, with that airport currently closed to international arrivals.

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Another international flight ban on the radar?

In 2020, except for humanitarian services, PNG banned all international passenger flights. The flights only resumed on a limited basis in February. However, most of the airlines that previously flew into Port Moresby (POM) have stayed away. That's largely left POM the domain of Air Niugini when it comes to international services. The airline has operated scaled-back flights to key international airports on its network since February.

But now, that's under threat again. Another international flight ban is reportedly on the agenda. According to news site Loop PNG, the country's government is considering its options.

"Papua New Guinea has a real risk due to the high vaccine hesitancy which exposes the majority of our people to the virus and leaves us without a lot of options," David Manning says.

"If necessary, we will consider closing our borders and banning all flights into and out of the country. We are aware that COVID-19 has affected our economy since the first case was recorded more than a year ago, but we would rather be proactive than reactive.

"At this point, we have proposed a number of intervention strategies to the government, such as the ban of international flights for its consideration."

Air Niugini continues to operate domestic flights around the country. Their international flights remain vital for keeping the country connected and bringing essential freight in. With that in jeopardy, the airline will be keeping a close eye on developments at the National Control Centre.