Tonga Airports Ltd. or TAL, a government-owned company is expected to take over the management of all Tongan airports, including the Fua'amotu International Airport, the Lupepau'u International Airport and four domestic airports on July 2.

Viliami Ma'ake the Acting CEO of the new company said that TAL will be responsible for most of the operations at the airport, the air traffic control, the maintenance and development of runways and terminals, "as well as the fire services."

He said that the decision to privatize the management of the Tongan airports was based on the need to "for us to move from a situation where airports are funded, operated and managed by government to one that is operated in a commercial viable manner, and the airport operations can be independent and separated from the regulatory body of the Civil Aviation.

"By segregating these two functions, it allows the new company to focus on upgrading and maintaining the airports, especially the Fua'amotu International airport, which is offering a substandard service comparing with our neighbouring countries, Fiji and Samoa, which are well up to the standard of New Zealand."

Viliami said that the handover of the management of the airports from the Ministry of Civil Aviation was originally scheduled for April, "but there were issues that needed to be finalised by Government so it has been deferred to July 2."

Viliami was the Director of Civil Aviation until April 18 when he resigned to take on his new post, the Acting CEO of TAL.

The new Director of Civil Aviation is the former Acting Secretary of Civil Aviation, Sione 'Akau'ola.