Fiji Airways (FJ, Nadi) has signed a letter of intent (LoI) with Odys Aviation for up to 25 of its runway-independent hybrid VTOL cargo aircraft. A pilot program using these aircraft is expected to commence in 2025.
Odys' hybrid electric cargo aircraft, dubbed 'Laila,' will come in multiple configurations and offer all-electric flights up to 320 kilometres, while relying on the hybrid-electric powertrain will allow flights of up to 1,200 kilometres, depending on the payload. Laila will have a cargo volume of 450 cubic feet and be able to fly payloads of 1,130 kilograms.
"Flights operated via these aircraft provide a low-carbon air cargo alternative for routes across the South Pacific and will open up new emergency medical routes that have, until now, been inaccessible because of infrastructure challenges," reads a September 19, 2024, statement on the LoI. "Further, operating Odys’ Laila aircraft will allow Fiji Airways to expand its commercial landscape and open up contracts with logistics and government agencies to support NGO operations across the region."
Odys expects to be conducting full-scale prototype test flights by late 2024, secure type-certification by late 2026 and begin commercial operations in 2027. The aircraft will have to range to connect all of Fiji's 320 islands, including those which have been inaccessible by conventional fixed wing aircraft.
In the same week, Fiji Airways signed an agreement with Fiji Sugar Corporation Limited and Lee Enterprises Consulting to evaluate the feasibility of sustainable aviation fuel production in Fiji. Funded by the Asian Development Bank, the collaboration will evaluate the feasibility of establishing a sustainable aviation fuel production and utilisation model in Fiji that leverages available local agricultural resources, particularly sugarcane byproducts such as molasses, sugar, and bagasse.
"The feasibility assessment will lay a foundation for Fiji’s national airline to meet its sustainability goals while utilising local resources that will help to reinvigorate and transform the domestic sugar industry, create new jobs, and improve the lives of Fijians," said Fiji Airways chief legal and sustainability officer Peter Seares.
