From The City Of Sails To
The City Of Celebrations!
New Pacific Blue Auckland – Sydney Flights Take Off Tomorrow
Monday 13 October 2008: Pacific Blue begins flying its newest trans-Tasman route tomorrow from Auckland to Sydney but
the celebrations will begin today in the City of Sails with a travel industry party hosted by Virgin Blue Group CEO
Brett Godfrey.
Pacific Blue announced a jump in capacity on the Tasman in July, offering daily flights from Auckland to Melbourne and
nine flights a week from Auckland to Sydney using 180-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The move prompted the airline’s
competitors to significantly drop their lead-in fares on the routes.
Brett Godfrey said that Pacific Blue has been a growth story in the past twelve months, launching a New Zealand domestic
airline and announcing a range of new international routes and destinations.
“Pacific Blue’s combination of a modern fleet, high quality service and affordable fares has struck a chord with New
Zealanders. We’re very happy with the support Kiwis have shown us as we’ve introduced real competition into the domestic
market, and we’re confident of their continued support on our international services.”
Mr Godfrey said that the Auckland-Sydney route was a busy one but that there was plenty of room for Pacific Blue as it
will be the first true low-fare airline in the market.
“Our strategy is always to look for markets that are under-served – not just in capacity but in terms of value for
money,” he said.
“Sydney is an iconic holiday destination and Auckland is a key gateway to New Zealand and a beautiful harbour city in
its own right, so it’s great to be able to offer much more affordable fares between these two cities and play a positive
part in boosting tourism on both sides of the Tasman.”
Tomorrow’s launch flight takes off at 6.00am (NZST) from Auckland with a water-arch farewell and will arrive in Sydney
three-and-a-half-hours later at 7.30am (AEST). The return flight will leave Sydney at 6.45pm (AEST) and touch-down at
Auckland Airport at 11.45pm (NZST).
Guests on tomorrow morning’s departure will be hosted by Pacific Blue team members dressed as “Sydney Icon” characters,
including an opera singer, a nightclub showgirl, and a surf lifesaver. Guests will be offered a complimentary glass of
bubbly on board to toast the new service and will receive a special limited edition t-shirt as a souvenir of the launch
flight.
About Pacific Blue, Polynesian Blue, Virgin Blue and V Australia
Pacific Blue and Polynesian Blue, along with Australian domestic airline Virgin Blue, operate a fleet of 72 modern
Boeing 737 and Embraer E-Jet aircraft flying to 25 Australian and eight international destinations including New
Zealand, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu and the Cook Islands. Virgin Blue Group’s newest airline, V Australia, is set to
commence flights between Australia and the USA from February 2008.
ENDS