A senior advisor of the French Polynesian government says talks have been held with China to explore the viability of using Tahiti as a transit point for air travel to South America.
Michel Paoletti has told the Tahititoday website that his delegation met the director general of China's international civil aviation who expressed interest in exploring the option.
Mr Paoletti says Fiji has also realised what is at stake, adding that French Polynesia being a bit closer to South America gives it a slight advantage.
He says there is also interest from Chile's carrier LAN, which last year merged with Brazil's TAM.
The Tahiti route from Shanghai to Santiago or Sao Paulo is shorter than the existing link via the US.