Shania Shayal Prasad 
The Republic of Fiji Navy is facing a major surveillance gap as it pushes to better secure Fiji’s vast maritime borders.
Navy Commander Timoci Natuva admits the Navy’s current monitoring capacity is limited, with no dedicated aerial surveillance capability in place.
He says under the national security strategy, aerial assets are critical because aircraft and drones can patrol areas far beyond the reach of naval vessels and in a fraction of the time.
Commander Natuva says Government is now examining the urgent need for a dedicated aircraft to strengthen maritime patrols and boost humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations.
“I think and see the value in having that capability, because it’s, aircrafts are faster and it travels a wide area. Drones is also a cost-effective measure that we can utilize.”
He says while international partners continue to assist, the lack of a national aerial platform continues to restrict operational independence and timely response.
“So without a dedicated platform, you lose that flexibility piece, where you, whenever you want to deploy, you deploy.”
The Republic of Fiji Navy maintains that aerial surveillance has already demonstrated its effectiveness, enabling naval vessels to concentrate on interdiction operations while aircraft and drones handle broader, wide-area monitoring.
Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.
