French Polynesian airline Air Tahiti Nui is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its maiden flight this year, which we are marking with a joint Aviationtag edition crafted from the F-OJTN. The Aviationtag X Air Tahiti Nui series was upcycled from the former Airbus A340-300 sporting manufacturer serial number (MSN) 395.
Originally ordered by Sabena, the A340 was completed in 2001 with the registration OO-SBQ. The liquidation of Sabena meant it did not take delivery of the Airbus though, so it was leased to the Canadian charter carrier Canada 3000 instead, which then also ceased operations, however.
In January 2002, Air Tahiti Nui took ownership of the MSN 395, christening it “Bora Bora” and giving it its ultimate registration. The F-OJTN then took to the skies for 16 years, connecting the carrier’s hub, Faa’a International Airport (also known as Tahiti International Airport), with the world.
In 2018, the F-OJTN was retired after 65.084 flight hours, 7.931 flight cycles and parked in the US, where it was eventually scrapped in 2021 – the opportunity for us to acquire some parts of the “Bora Bora” and upcycle them for the Aviationtag X Air Tahiti Nui Edition. “Bora Bora” is now writing the next chapter in its story as an Aviationtag.
Note: Every tag is unique. Depending on the plane, tags may vary in terms of haptics, material thickness and colour. Small blemishes bear witness to the plane’s long history and are an authentic reminder of its glory days over the clouds. Small scratches, flaky paint and imperfections are totally normal and give our Aviationtags their unique charm – the charm of a vintage product crafted from upcycled materials. These quirks are not the result of the production process, they simply reflect the state of the aircraft material we use when it was extracted. The original aircraft paint of this edition is rather sensitive, so please take good care of your tag!
If you want to use it as a key-chain or bag-tag we strongly suggest to use the Aviationtag
protective cover. The paint of the F-OJTN is slightly uneven, which causes the engraving to shimmer between silver and black. This is the uniqueness of this edition and not a production error – all Aviationtags were lasered the same way.