‘This is the kind of investment we need’

MP Enterprises president Keith Stewart officially introduces the Northern Marianas Airways to the public last Thursday at the commuter terminal of the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport. (KIMBERLY ESMORES)

Following the recent unveiling of the Northern Marianas Airways to the public, Gov. Ralph DLG Torres has expressed enthusiasm for future opportunities that a home-based international airline would bring to the CNMI.

In a brief interview with Torres, he said that MP Enterprises, spearheaded by its president, Keith Stewart, has accomplished a great feat for the CNMI through the establishment of a Saipan-based international airline, adding that this is the kind of investment that the CNMI needs.

“This type of investment, this is what we need—having a flagship international airline registered here in the Marianas. For us, this is the greatest accomplishment that any island destination could ever ask and hope for. It’s going to create opportunities. Every passenger, every tourist that comes in gives opportunities for farmers, for a fisherman, or a plumber, for every occupation, an opportunity to grow our workforce, and to open up new tourist sources like Australia,” he said.

Aside from providing jobs for local resident, the airline would also open up further investment opportunities for the CNMI, Torres added.

“It’s not just about tourists coming in, it’s also investors. This airline could bring in new investors and when these investors come in, they’ll look around and say, ‘Maybe I want to build a restaurant,’ ‘Maybe I want to build a brewery’ because we don’t have that here. They might think ‘Maybe I’ll upgrade their watersports,’ ‘Maybe I want to join a fishing industry.’ So we will see that for sure, 100%, because we saw that when the Japanese market and Korean market came. When tourists come in, their investors also come in. So I look forward to it. It’s a great thing for the Marianas. This will also open up investment opportunities for Rota or Tinian. So I congratulate all the partners and we look forward to making sure that they succeed because when they succeed, we all succeed,” he said.

Torres also addressed the possibility of establishing an Australian tourist market, something the CNMI has never had.

“I was surprised because that’s a market that I never thought would be possible, especially since we’re so used to our Asian market like the Philippines, Korea, Japan and, of course, China. I am excited. This is a great opportunity for us to showcase what we have in the Marianas to that side of the world,” Torres said.

Last week, Northern Marianas Airways was officially introduced to members of the public starting with a tour of a Boeing 757-200 aircraft, the same type of aircraft that will be used as the airlines’ daily driver once it officially launches flights.

MP Enterprises, in collaboration with Northern Pacific Airways’ CEO Rob McKinney, flew in a B757-200 aircraft last Wednesday to give CNMI stakeholders a sneak peek into the actual aircraft Northern Marianas Airways will soon have as its workhorse.