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Fiji Airways to fly new Airbus A350s to Sydney and Los Angeles

7 May 2019 by Craig Bright
Fiji Airways Airbus A350-900 - Credit: Airbus/Fixion/Dreamstime.com

Fiji Airways recently announced it will be acquiring two new Airbus A350-900 aircraft that it plans to launch on “popular routes between the US and Australia”, and it looks as though Sydney and Los Angeles will be the two services getting the new aircraft starting early next year.

The new widebody aircraft are expected to be delivered in November and December, and are set to launch on both routes from January 1, 2020, a spokesperson for Fiji Airways confirmed with Business Traveller Asia-Pacific.

On the Sydney service, the A350 will fly daily while on the Los Angeles service it will fly six times per week, with the seventh weekly flight on Tuesdays flown by the airline’s A330-300.

Fiji Airways has confirmed the A350s will feature a two-class set up with 33 seats in the business class cabin and 301 seats in economy.

Notably, the business class cabin will feature a new fully flat seat product based on B/E Aerospace’s “Super Diamond” model. This is the same base product as seen on Hong Kong Airlines’ newest A350s, as well as British Airways’ upcoming A350-1000s in the form of its recently unveiled Club Suite (pictured below).

British Airways Club Suite

For an in-depth look at the different off-the-rack business class seats, and the airlines that use them, head over to our Business Class Seat Guide.

The Super Diamond is designed to sit in a 1-2-1 reverse-herringbone configuration with seats angled away from the aisles. This set up offers decent privacy and also means all passengers in the cabin get direct access to the aisles – something not offered on the airline’s A330s.

In the economy class cabin, Fiji Airways’ newest aircraft will feature Recaro’s CL3710 seats, the same as those used by Singapore Airlines on its new generation A350s and upcoming Boeing 777X aircraft.

Here’s a photo of the base product:

Recaro CL3710

The A350s will also feature onboard wifi.

Speaking about the airline’s new A350s, Andre Viljoen, managing director and CEO of Fiji Airways, said: “Ultimately, a luxury, world-class destination, like Fiji, deserves a luxury, world-class travel experience and that’s exactly what these aircraft will deliver.”

Fiji Airways’ existing widebody fleet is modest, comprising just six A330s.

Last year, the airline became the first carrier to join the Oneworld alliance under its new “Oneworld Connect” programme. The scheme is designed to allow carriers that wouldn’t normally be able to meet the requirements for full membership, but whose networks would be beneficial for existing member carriers, to join the alliance in a partial capacity.

Meanwhile, Oneworld member Qantas launched its own non-stop flights between Sydney and Fiji’s capital Nadi at the end of March. These services are flown by its B737 aircraft, which notably do not offer fully flat seating.

Business Traveller Asia-Pacific recently reviewed Qantas’ business class product and service on board its 737-800 flying from Melbourne to Sydney.

[embed]https://www.businesstraveller.com/tried-and-tested/flight-review-qantas-boeing-737-800-business-class/[/embed]
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