Australia sent a C-27 cargo aircraft with a team aboard to Fiji to boost air monitoring in the country and the surrounding area on February 22nd. The team and the aircraft will be stationed at Mausori International Airport.
Fiji’s Minister for Home Affairs and Immigration, Pio Tikoduadua, said the partnership with Australia is “critical in addressing traditional and non-traditional security threats.” He also claimed, “We live in an age where we cannot work as individuals, and no single agency has all the answers. Our people depend on us in Government to work with national purpose- this is the Pacific way.”
Teams deployed to Fiji will be ongoing for two out of every eight weeks. A Joint Air Tasking Unit was created to monitor requests for flights regarding supply movements and personnel, search and rescue operations, and humanitarian missions.
