General News
22 April, 2026
Yanks drawn by flights
THE first 12 months of Fiji Airways’ services to Cairns have been a factor in a healthly increase in Northern Americans travelling to the Far North.
A key aspect of the flights are the onward links from Nadi to the western seaboard of North America after a short stopover, reducing the flight time to Australia.
Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief executive officer Mark Olsen said the direct service from Nadi to Cairns was a strong selling point in the North American market for both business and leisure travel.
“TTNQ’s campaign activity with trade partners to promote the route in the US generated 27,000 passengers in 2024-25 with 14 campaigns in market, including one with Fiji Airways which generated 4128 US passengers alone,” he said.
“We have confirmed six trade campaigns in the US this financial year to support the Fiji Airways service with the target of generating 12,500 passengers.”
Cairns Airport chief executive officer Richard Barker said sectors across Tropical North Queensland had experienced the positive impact of Fiji Airways’ year-round service direct from Nadi. “Last year, the United States took the title as our region’s largest international source market and Canada also increased significantly, growing the overall North America market to 135,000 as at December 2025,” he said.
“This growth was supported by Fiji Airways’ seamless, one-stop connectivity, which reduced the flight time to just 16 hours and eliminated the need for travellers to stop in other Australian ports,” he said.
Mr Barker said many Northern American travellers were arriving in Australia via a capital city port, visiting Cairns and then flying home via Nadi.
“Cairns is also home to thousands of Fiji diaspora, who have previously faced long and expensive journeys home,” he said. “Fiji Airways has enabled more frequent family visits while saving significant travel cost and time.
“We have also seen increased participation in local sporting events like the Cairns 7s Rugby Tournament, which attracts teams from across the Pacific, plus a swell of locals enjoying Fiji as a new, accessible holiday destination.”
Fiji Airways business development manager Inga Brown said the route had added more than 53,000 seats annually to the market, supporting steady visitor demand in both regions, strengthening aviation capacity and contributing to the airline’s continual growth in 2025 alone.
