Dua wants confusion over airport cleared

AIR Niugini is unable to resume flights to Kundiawa Airport in Chimbu because the runway has been reduced by 65 metres.
Link PNG general manager Bruce Alabaster said this yesterday to asnwer questyions regarding the prolonged cancellation of flights into Kundiawa airport.
But Chimbu Governor Michael Dua is still not happy.
“The provincial government under my leadership is ready to support NAC and the airline companies resume flights into Kundiawa but I don’t know what their problems are for not resuming flights,” Governor Dua said.
He said if it’s true that the airport runway has been reduced by 65 metres, then NAC should explain that , he said.
Dua said ground officers at Kundiawa Airport said the airport was extended by another 26 metres during the rehabilitation work and the runway was now 1026 metres long.
“The general manager for Link PNG said it’s reduced by 65 metres whilst on the ground, the length is said to be extended by 26 metres,” Dua said.
“We need some clarification on these. NAC and Air Niugini need to come clea.”
He said Kundiawa airport serves both the provinces of Jiwaka and Chimbu and the prolonged delay by the NAC and airline companies to work together and resume flights is a denial of the right of the people to get an air service.
The National Airports Corporation (NAC) has made it clear that Kundiawa airport does not have any problems in receiving flights from the airline companies but the decision to fly in depends on the airline companies themselves.
Alabaster said Link PNG as an airline company will only rely on official documents to operate that includes description of the airport and the Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP), which indicated that Kundiawa Airport was reduced by 65 metres during recent rehabilitation works.
“We as the airline can only rely on the official documents and these show that the runway has been reduced by 65 metres, and as a consequence it is now too short to allow for Air Links DHC-8 flights,” Alabaster told The National.
Link PNG is a subsidiary of Air Niugini.