Air Niugini is ready to operate Cairns/Hong Kong route via Port Moresby using its wide body Boeing 767 aircraft, commencing in October this year. Managing Director, Alan Milne made the airline’s capabilities known during a meeting with business leaders in Cairns recently.Air Niugini’s offer to take up the Cairns/Hong Kong route followed an earlier announcement by Cathay Pacific to cease flights on that route by October this year after operating for 25 years. Mr Milne said “ Air Niugini is not new to the Hong Kong route and is not new to Cairns, we already operating three weekly services to Hong Kong as well as five services to each of the other Asian hubs of Singapore and Manila using our Boeing 767 aircraft. We provide convenient connections from Cairns to Asia and the wider Pacific and are already the fastest route from Cairns to Manila.  We are also the fastest one stop route between Cairns and Hong Kong at a little over 9 hours, compared to 13 plus hours via Brisbane and Singapore and at competitive fares.”