Flights have resumed at Port Vila following a magnitude 7.3 earthquake on December 17, 2024. The airport reopened to commercial flights on December 22, hosting scheduled Fiji Airways, Virgin Australia, Qantas, and Air Vanuatu services on the day.
ADS-B flight tracking shows Fiji Airways operated two flights from Nadi, Virgin Australia flew in from Brisbane International, and Qantas operated a scheduled service from Sydney Kingsford Smith on the day of the airport's reopening. Local carrier Air Vanuatu also operated two services to and from Espiritu Santo and a single service to Tanna.
The earthquake, which was followed by aftershocks, killed at least 12 people and caused significant damage around the country, including at the airport. Prior to the airport allowing commercial services to resume, the Royal Australian Air Force was permitted to undertake six evacuation flights using Globemaster III and C-130J Hercules aircraft.
The airport has denied that its runway infrastructure was severely and aviation fuel contaminated. "These rumours are untrue," the company said on Facebook. "Our certified aviation infrastructure engineers have completed a thorough inspection of all our airport pavements and have certified them as safe for operations."
Aside from the four aforementioned carriers, Port Vila is also served by Jetstar Airways, Air Calédonie, Aircalin, Air Niugini, and Solomons - Solomon Airlines. It is connected to 14 other airports across seven countries.
