Ni Sa Bula!

Now in its 25th year of service, Turtle Airways was the first floatplane operation in Fiji. Currently we are only servicing Turtle Island guests.

BACKGROUND

Turtle Airways was founded by Richard Evanson in 1979, partly to transport crew and material for the 1980 film, the "Blue Lagoon." The popular movie, starring Brooke Shields, was filmed on Evanson's privately-owned Turtle Island, an award-winning five-star resort located in the Yasawa Islands. The short, scenic and convenient flight to the island is just 30 minutes by air from Fiji's international airport in Nadi, compared to up to nine hours by boat. (Despite the similarity in names, Turtle Airways and Turtle Island are separate companies and serve different, although complementary, needs.)

In 1982, Evanson sold 75% of Turtle Airways to South Seas Cruises, in exchange for 25% of the cruise company. In 1998, however, South Seas Cruises was sold to Fullers, a large publicly-traded transport company based in New Zealand. This event gave Evanson, an American multimillionaire expatriate now known for his tourism and philanthropic activities in Fiji, an opportunity and incentive to resume total ownership of the Fiji-based airline. He repurchased Turtle Airways in July, 1998.

Under Evanson's direction, Turtle Airways has been an exclusive seaplane transfer service for Turtle Island in order to better service Turtle Island guests.

Fiji Vacation Sales  

Turtle Airways' transportation services in Fiji are available worldwide: our regional sales representatives are located in the U.S.A., Australia, and Fiji.